Just a few days ago Cupra announced the launch of the Tavascán, its new 100% electric SUV, a model that should definitely project the Spanish performance firm towards electrification. This vehicle, which will be manufactured in China and will arrive in 2024, should also be a turning point for the Catalan company in many respects. It is not only revolutionary and groundbreaking in its exterior and interior design; but when it arrives at the dealerships it will have new engagement and brand loyalty tools.
The manufacturer from Martorell is preparing for the new scenario that is yet to come in aspects such as digitized services or virtual reality, factors that will begin to have a real impact on the automotive universe imminently, according to some experts. Cupra wants to be one step ahead of the competition and that is why it has launched Metahype, an innovative, interactive, open and collaborative exploration space in the metaverse.
Debuting at Cupra's Exponential Impulse event in Germany, Metahype is an ever-growing virtual island where brands, creators and communities come together to socialize, collaborate and have exciting experiences. This space is made up of different districts and common areas that can be owned by brands, startups and creators to connect and interact with the new generations.
Said virtual and interactive space for the Cupra community has been created with a wide variety of experiences in mind, from product presentations to car configurators or games. This is one of the most important international bets in the automotive world for the metaverse.
Developed internally with the support of local partners, Metahype's fundamental objective is to connect different communities and promote collaboration with the only limit of the imagination and creativity of the Cupra Tribe. It is already accessible from the computer and, soon, it will also be accessible through mobile devices.
One of the objectives of this project, points out from CUPRA, is to redefine the way in which people live experiences and feel emotions, beyond the limits of the physical world. In this sense, among the highlights that can be found in Metahype is CUPRA Next, a space where the audience can influence the future of the brand by configuring their own version of upcoming releases. The first practical example is the DarkRebel, a virtual sports car that allows users to customize it using the Hyper Configurator.
Through the Wildbytes experiential innovation agency, CUPRA has developed an immersive sensory experience around the DarkRebel. Thus, the Hyper Configurator car configurator becomes a laboratory –accessible from mobile devices and web browsers– powered by the latest technologies in video game creation, such as the Unreal Engine (rendering in real time), and pixel streaming systems to take away quality and accessibility to new heights.
It runs through the cloud and is played via streaming on the devices, without the need to install any additional application. In this configurator, users can interact in different virtual environments and experiment creating colors, materials and finishes to boost their creativity without the limitations of physical viability in the material world. In addition, it provides tools for the CUPRA Tribe to create their own versions of the car and thus be able to influence the final design of a physical model that will be presented in the near future.
The differential concept of the experience is the degree of exponentiality in which the model of the car and its environment will vary depending on the modifications made throughout the configuration process. Thus, depending on the degree of exponentiality that the user chooses, from realism to imagination, the Hyper Configurator will allow to dynamically alter some attributes of the car affecting its environment, such as the colors, graphics and effects of that model.
The experience designed by Wildbytes runs through different environments in which users can create their own Cupra DarkRebel starting from a first model and a more realistic environment to evolve to a more dreamlike final design, breathing a look
The first environment has been inspired by natural elements such as minerals and stones, to give way to a second space marked by the digital aesthetics of neon: glow, parametric geometries and fluorescent lights. The final result has a graphic quality very close to cinematographic with the aim of moving away from the classic car configurator and, instead, offering a more sensorial and immersive experience.
Gen Z, as well as the even younger generations, have become the main target of the metaverse, since their technology combines various aspects that focus on some of the interests and concerns of this sector of the population. The game is key for them; 9 out of 10 Gen Zers say they play games on any device, more than any other generation. These youngsters prefer a social gaming experience. 40% played an online game with real life friends and 22% watched a live game broadcast (twitch, youtube, gaming...) in the last month.
It is not surprising, therefore, that the main studies on the subject highlight figures such as that Generation Z and Millennials are the age groups that dominate 90% of online conversations about the metaverse or that the metaverse is considered a tool that helps disconnect more than 8 in 10 members of Generation Z.
The "Next Gen" is increasingly interested in creating connections and interacting with brands, as well as trying new things and new technologies, as well as exploring the world and through exclusive experiences in an immersive and collaborative environment around virtual events. For this reason, manufacturers such as CUPRA have focused their attention on this new "intangible reality" in order to position their products among the drivers of the future.
