XR Spaces is an ambitious project born from my role as an Experience Architect at XR HUB Bavaria. The project’s core idea is to democratize access to social VR spaces, making them easily discoverable and accessible to everyone. It provides a platform where the community, including artists, educators, and exhibitors, can create and explore interconnected virtual environments.
To bring XR Spaces to life, I created two main components. The first is a virtual environment composed of numerous interconnected spaces, each crafted by the XR creator community and myself. These spaces are hosted on a Kubernetes cluster on Digital Ocean, following the discontinuation of Mozilla Hubs. I also implemented a robust DevOps pipeline to manage the deployment and customization of the software stack.
The second component is a CRUD web application that allows users to create accounts, list their virtual rooms, categorize them, and make them public. This web application facilitates community engagement and room discovery, providing features like reviews, likes, and advanced search functionalities.
Key Contributions
- Developed a network of interconnected virtual rooms for various uses like work, education and showcases.
- Leveraged an open-source framework (Mozilla Hubs) to build the infrastructure, transitioning to self-hosting after its discontinuation.
Technical Implementation
- Developed virtual spaces using Hubs and Spoke
- Hosting on a Digital Ocean Kubernetes cluster for scalable and maintainable infrastructure.
- Created the front-end of a CRUD web app with Flutter, connected with Firebase, a managed database for user management and space creation
An Open and Inclusive Metaverse
The primary goal of XR Spaces is to make the Metaverse accessible to everyone, fostering a space where the community can create, meet, work, and learn in XR. This project is driven by the belief that immersive environments can significantly enhance social interaction, learning, and creative expression. By providing a platform that supports these activities, XR Spaces aims to cultivate a vibrant community and democratize access to cutting-edge XR technologies.
Motivations
- Democratize access to social VR spaces.
- Enhance social interactions, learning, and creativity through XR.
- Build a community-driven Metaverse platform.
Project Outcome
XR Spaces has successfully created a comprehensive platform for discovering and interacting with social VR spaces. The project, still in development, has laid a strong foundation with a fully functional infrastructure and a growing user base. It offers a seamless user experience, from virtual space creation to public listing and discovery. The next phase will include enhanced social features and search capabilities, further enriching the user experience and community engagement.
As the Experience and Solution Architect, my role is pivotal in designing and implementing both the virtual environments and the supporting infrastructure. My work ensured the project’s team can simply interact with the platform through robustness and user-centric design, with the goal to positioning XR Spaces as a leading platform in the emerging Metaverse landscape.