Tom Impallomeni

20 hours in and Hoyo's formidable craftsmanship is on full display with ZZZ. ⭐1.0 release pool of 16 characters. Hoyo games have always prioritized quality over quantity, leaning instead on deep systems to enable diverse team comps / fun theorycrafting. Interestingly, Wuthering Waves also launched with the same # of characters in its 1.0 pool. I'm personally a big fan of this approach, and hope to see more games adopt it going forward. ⭐Female to male character ratio of 3:1. HSR currently stands at ~2:1 and Genshin at ~1.7:1. Every faction shown so far has only 1 male char. Surprising given Hoyo's recent titles have focused more on the "mainstream anime" audience instead of catering only to the core otaku audience. Very happy to see Hoyo honoring its roots here. They cooked and core fans are going to be very pleased with all of the fanservice (e.g. cinema artwork, main menu char selection, etc.). ⭐C6 / Cinema artwork is... IYKYK. They clearly tested it with HSR and are fully leaning into it with ZZZ. Congrats to all you Grace C6 havers. They knew exactly what they were doing. ⭐First Hoyo game with dedicated furries / anthropomorphic races. Ellen, Ben, and Von Lycaon are all very compelling characters. Wakayama Shion does such a fantastic job as Ellen's VA. Hoyo absolutely nailed the launch banner here. ⭐Just like other Hoyo games, ZZZ is more "casual" than it is "core." It doesn't demand much of your time as a single player live service title. For me it's the perfect side game that I can see myself spending 1-2 hours per week on. I don't expect everyone to like it (might be too "easy" for core gamers), but it's a winning formula that Hoyo has perfected for its target audience. ⭐One of Hoyo's underrated special talents is making "core" genres widely accessible from a gameplay standpoint across all platforms. ZZZ plays flawlessly on mobile, PC, and console without diluting the experience at all. Everything from the simplified switching system to the flat level design was intentional to make it incredibly accessible even for someone who has never played action games before. This is something really only Hoyo is capable of pulling off with such finesse. ⭐Really digging the comic / manga style storytelling. Glad to see Hoyo continue to innovate on how it delivers its stories and really looking forward to seeing more of this. ⭐Hoyo's investments into its music / animation departments are really paying off. The release trailer for ZZZ is Hoyo's best yet and their character drip marketing is perfected to the point where I'm basically forced to pull on every banner. In many ways, Hoyo is slowly becoming the Apple of the gaming industry, and their IPs are rapidly expanding the audience for gacha and anime on a global scale. I'm honestly humbled. Shut up and take my money... #zenlesszonezero

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Stepping into adjacent containers, digital, physical, magical to just, oh I don't know, keep it spicy. "Seira, a series of digital video artworks, is a synthesis of modern day technology and the yearning for profound human experiences. Utilizing TouchDesigner, AI software, code, and my original designs, I explore the intersection of the digital and the organic– drawing inspiration from technoromanticism, ancient Greek sirens, and synesthesia.   At its heart, this series is an exploration of the complex relationship between death and _l'appel du vide_—the call of the void. This psychological phenomenon, which tempts humans with the allure of self-destruction, is mirrored in the ancient myth of the sirens. The siren's song, like the void, is a lure that challenges us to confront our deepest impulses—the pull towards oblivion and the simultaneous yearning for transcendence. I intentionally draw a parallel between _l'appel du vide_ and the siren’s call, as both are manifestations of our intrinsic fascination with the unknown, with that which lies beyond the boundaries of safety and rationality." Seirá, Meditations on l'appel du vide (2024) by Neesh Chaudhary https://lnkd.in/gDm_3KTS

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A quick sanity-check to separate the two: do all the studio shareholders have the same expectations when it comes to liquidity and returns timeline? If yes: the studio is company-creating in harmony with its startup cofounders and follow-on investors. If no: decisions go from positive-sum to zero-sum and value creation suffers.

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Last week, Suno announced $125M in funding, marking a significant milestone in their journey to reshape the music creation landscape. On this week's episode of Unsupervised Learning, we caught up with Suno's founder, Mikey Shulman, to hear the latest (and workshop some new intro music for the pod 👀). Some of my favorite take-aways 👇 Non-text based prompting While text-based prompting has been an effective approach so far, Mikey argues that it’s a sterile way to describe what you’re really after. Users should be able to really pour themselves into a song, which might require expressing themselves through a montage of visuals or recorded sounds from every-day life, belting out a melody or tapping on the table to create a beat. Everything multi-player Picture musicians jamming together in real-time shooting musical ideas back and forth—it's all about making music creation as natural as having a conversation. Mikey’s really into the idea that these collaborative sessions can be just as fun for someone who's just starting out as they are for seasoned pros. It's about opening up music making to everyone, no matter their skill level, and creating a community vibe that lets everyone contribute their own flavor. This way, making music becomes not just more enjoyable but a shared experience that anyone can be a part of. One of the coolest night’s of Mikey’s journey Mikey got a kick out of seeing a popular Twitch streamer use Suno for a digital concert that pulled in a football stadium’s worth of people. It wasn't just about the size of the crowd though—the cool part was how viewers could use micropayments to interact directly with the performer. This takes your usual digital concert and turns it into something super interactive.   How Suno does model eval Mikey shares how tricky it is to evaluate models in music compared to other fields. Suno looks at things like audio quality, but those metrics are far from perfect. At Suno, they believe that aesthetics really matter—so much of this comes down to how the music feels, which is super subjective. Unlike text AI, where you can measure correctness, music doesn't have one right answer. It's all about whether the music resonates with users and gives them the control they want over the creation process. A lot of it relies on human judgment and that's probably not changing anytime soon for Suno. Check out the full episode to hear more from Mikey about the future of music with AI. YouTube: https://lnkd.in/ghh_qhnd Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3WXvkDN Apple: https://apple.co/4aCIOrz

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→ Why BUDETO’s Startup Studio Model is Different 🏄 Ever wonder what makes startup studios like BUDETO unique? We don’t just invest—we partner closely with founders, from the very first idea to the first big round of funding. By providing hands-on guidance, strategic support, and a network to lean on, BUDETO helps founders skip common mistakes and scale faster. Whether you’re a first-time founder or on your second round, our approach is built to boost your chances of success. 📚 Read more about it in our blog post! 🔗 https://lnkd.in/e5A5eYE2

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I’m seeing more partial “Venture Studios.“ Should they be considered studios or something else? What do I mean? I’m seeing groups that apply some of the core studio elements 1) a repeatable playbook, 2) playing a (late) cofounder role, 3) making a capital or sweat equity investment, and 4) have a degree of decision control over their area. A few examples: A group that builds your sales and support operations groups once you have a product and have raised a Seed round. They support through the next round and fully setup your own sales and support operations teams, playbooks, training, etc. They make a small investment for a preferred stake and earn a common stake through their sweat equity. They own the success of these areas of the company and provide guidance on broader company challenges. A group that offers product management, design, and development from as early as idea stage. They play a core role in customer discovery and own product design and software development. The team they build your product with may fully transition to the company along with a full operations playbook and they help find and train the leaders than will replace them. They make no capital investment, but do not charge for their support, rather earning sweat equity. A group that builds your marketing team, delivering, marketing, branding, PR, and social influence for the company. They own creating the full marketing strategy, devising branding, building influence to drive sales and building a team for the company to continue with post-engagement. They don’t invest money, just provide everything for zero cost. They are not agencies. They don’t follow the direction of the company blindly, having a degree of control over their area of expertise. They own success, lead their areas, and integrate with the full company. In many ways they act like the CxO and team. They could displace the need for a founder. Their equity stakes look more in line with an accelerator and are often structured as fees treated as convertible investment, often with a cap. They are not full studios. They are either designed from the ground up with this singular focus or are a transition from a traditional agency to a full studio model. So the question is: Are they studios? If so, do we call them Venture Developers? Venture Operators? Fractional Studios? Let me know in the comments. I am VERY curious to hear the community’s thoughts on this.

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If you’re a founder building at the intersection of Games & AI, or just interested in what’s happening at the bleeding edge of the future in Silicon Valley, the new episode of /all chat is worth a listen.👇 Link in comments below. Hot takes from Patron portfolio founders Rick Ling of Rascal Games and Nico Christie of Altera with my partners Brian Cho and Jason Yeh! #games #ai #founders #seedfunding #startups

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The venture studio sector has been EXPLODING, and like many new categories, best practices and standard operating procedures are hard to come by. We're teaming up to change that. 👇 After analyzing 500+ studios globally, we've systematically catalogued where studios go astray: ▪️Their systematic approach breaks with every new venture ▪️Their IP is world-class but commercialization is amateur ▪️The deeper they dig, the more complex the studio gets ▪️Their passion is building companies - not operations - but operations are the bottleneck This is why we've combined forces. A combined team of 9point8 Collective and Venture Studio Associates. There are a LOT of venture studio challenges. And we are better at solving them together. Together, we bring: ▪️16+ studios launched & advised ▪️1,200+ studio professional network ▪️Battle-tested design & operational frameworks We've already solved this for: ▪️Multiple tech transfer studios scaling IP commercialization ▪️A studio of studios (launched 5 studios, 11+ companies) ▪️A cash-flow focused studio (3 ventures, 2 profitable) ▪️Health & MedTech Studios navigating regulation ▪️Studio building for VC, PE, & Debt Financing Ready to unlock your studio's real value? Comment below, DM me "98VSA" , or email us at [email protected] for a private consultation on: ▪️Studio design, build, and launch ▪️Management and scaling ▪️Operational excellence Accepting 3 new clients for January 2025. ♻️ Share this with a studio builder who needs to see it #venturestudios #startupstudios #companycreators

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Independent productions thrive on multiple revenue streams, from video games to merchandise. Just like George Lucas capitalized on Star Wars' IP, filmmakers today can diversify their income. 🔍 𝗜𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁: Independent productions can leverage multiple revenue streams, including IP, merchandise, and international sales. Continue watching the full conversation to understand the full potential of these revenue streams: https://lnkd.in/gn-RJ8rp Unlock the full potential of your investments with Angel Investors Network. Discover unique opportunities in the global entertainment market! https://lnkd.in/duiBQ5S2 How do you leverage multiple revenue streams in your business? Let's discuss! #IndependentFilms #MultipleRevenueStreams #Entrepreneurship #Investing #CapitalRaising #BusinessGrowth #FilmProduction #AlternativeInvesting #GlobalMarket #BusinessTips

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GenAI the New "Napster"? Napster was a peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing application primarily associated with digital audio file distribution. Founded by Shawn Fanning and Sean Parker, the platform originally launched on June 1, 1999. Audio shared on the service was typically encoded in the MP3 format. As the software became popular, the company encountered legal difficulties over copyright infringement. Napster ceased operations in 2001 after losing multiple lawsuits and filed for bankruptcy in June 2002. Napster was mostly an open and shut case. The company maintained a centralized database of content and facilitated a form of file sharing (P2P), which left it no credible way to distance itself from copyright violations. What about AI? In the case of AI, copyrighted works are hoovered up and a Generative AI technology uses the prior art to create new work. According to major music labels #universalmusicgroup #sonymusicgroup and #warnermusicgroup, this is a copyright violation based on the argument that the "new" works are too similar to the copyright versions. The AI case is much more nuanced than the Napster case, but both represent major leaps forward in technology (Internet file sharing and AI, respectively) followed by an immediate paradigm shift in intellectual property infringement cases. Anne Steele of the WSJ reports: The case against #Suno, developer of Suno AI, was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts and the case against #UnchartedLabs, developer of Udio AI, was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. The companies have allowed users to generate sound-a-likes of recordings including The Temptations’ “My Girl,” Green Day’s “American Idiot” and Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas,” along with recordings by Chuck Berry and James Brown, according to the suits, brought by trade group the Recording Industry Association of America. The record labels are seeking damages that could stretch into $billions. #ai #genai #intellectualproperty #ethics #leadership #data #datagovernance #aigovernance 

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Well, it seems there's a shake-up in the music industry. Major record labels have initiated lawsuits against two leading AI music companies. While this move isn't entirely unexpected given the ongoing debates around AI and copyright, it's prompting some intriguing questions: How will this legal battle shape the future of music creation and intellectual property? Interestingly, major labels have shown interest in utilizing AI technology themselves. The big question now is how they will navigate this complex landscape and whether they will rally around a unified approach to "ethically trained" solutions. What are your thoughts on these developments and their potential impact on the music industry? 🎶 #MusicTech #CopyrightLaw #AIinMusic https://lnkd.in/dpj7ZtvS

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Your venture studio is leaving billions on the table. We're teaming up to change that. 👇 After analyzing 500+ studios globally, here's what kills studio value: ▪️Your systematic approach breaks with every new venture ▪️Your IP is world-class but commercialization is amateur ▪️The deeper you dig, the more complex the studio gets ▪️Adapting the studio model is becoming a nightmare ▪️Your passion is building companies - not operations ▪️A studio looked simple until reality hit This is why we've combined forces. Our team at VSA and the team at 9Point8 Collective. There are a LOT of venture studio challenges. And we are better at solving them together. Together, we bring: ▪️16+ studios launched & advised ▪️500+ analyzed studio frameworks ▪️1,200+ studio professional network ▪️Battle-tested design & operational frameworks We've already solved this for: ▪️Multiple tech transfer studios scaling IP commercialization ▪️A studio of studios (launched 5 studios, 11+ companies) ▪️A cash-flow focused studio (3 ventures, 2 profitable) ▪️Health & MedTech Studios navigating regulation ▪️Studios building for VC, PE, & Debt Financing Ready to unlock your studio's real value? Comment below, DM me "98VSA" , or email us at [email protected] for a private consultation on: ▪️Studio design, build, and launch ▪️Management and scaling ▪️Operational excellence Accepting 3 new clients for January 2025. ♻️ Share this with a studio builder who needs to see it Looking forward to working more with the 9Point8 Collective team! JT Benton Neal Ghosh Blair Merlino Evan Allen

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Join Bits of Signum, Creator Stories for an enlightening conversation with serial entrepreneur Le Zhang, Founder of Spaceport.xyz and ARK Investment Management LLC's Nicholas Grous - thanks to you both! Spaceport sits at the intersection of several areas of our exploration, namely #IPrights, #web3, #UGC, Roblox, Fortnite. https://lnkd.in/eFypjk99 Signum Growth Thesis:  We believe that IP rights protection will be baked into the technology at some point in the future. Currently, we are in a period of early experimentation, and we are seeing a lot of cool AI creations. We are also in a sea of IP rights infringements. The industries of video games and entertainment depend heavily on rights, which generate a lot of value - $350 billion referenced by Le Zhang in the podcast. Blockchain technology is uniquely suited to solve this problem. We are deep in the Polkadot ecosystem so please ask us about this. Bottom line: if we thought that Cambridge Analytica was scary, AI will take the level of fake news and inauthenticity to a national security threat level. Why wouldn’t we seek a cryptographic backing of truly authentic digital IP? Spaceport was started to build tools for brands and IP owners allowing them to license content legally, starting with Roblox and Fortnite UEFN. If a creator wants to build a game using Pikachu, they will be able to do this legally. Spaceport vision: to become the IP licensing layer of the metaverse, not just for UGC platforms, but all gaming applications, digital applications and even real world applications. Web3 technology tackles IP rights! We dove into a fun example of a physical Pachimari keychain ($5), valued lower than an identical digital version in Overwatch 2 ($10), a perfect demonstration of the evolving value of physical and digital items as we spend more time online. We wonder if this is the audience value? Finally, we touched on the ways in which DMCA takedowns are evolving, and stay tuned for Spaceport news on democratizing IP rights creation across Roblox and Fortnite! We hope you will listen in and let us know your thoughts? Thanks from me & the SGC team`> Keshav Holani, Eliza Jappinen, Karen Bader. Also, please subscribe to the Bits of Signum Substack and interact with us there! https://lnkd.in/eqANk5K5

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