#190 - X App is coming

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Today,

1. Elon's X App is a very real prospect

2. Google's "Westworld" experiment

3. Artist of the week: Noah Kocher

4. Azuki plushies & NFTNow's 100

Plus, all the web3 headlines, memes, and Tweets of the day.

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X App is coming

Twitter is already the home of web3. It's where the space's most engagement-hungry degens spend their days, "GM-ing" each other deeper into the metaverse.

But, if Twitter's new owner has any say, the bird app is set to become more than just a web3 meeting place.

Elon wants to transform Twitter into a web3-integrated platform, which builds on a vision he first dreamt up during his time at PayPal, housed under his umbrella brand, X.

Here are 3 recent developments in that grand plan.

Twitter is now X Corp

Technically, Twitter hasn't existed as an independent company since April 4th.

That's because Elon officially merged Twitter Inc. with his holdings company, "X Corp."

Crypto Twitter – for real?

Rumors are again surfacing that Twitter is preparing support ETH, BTC, and other crypto payments inside the app.

We've seen signs that Twitter is designing a digital wallet for a while. Back in June '22, a leaked transcript of an employee Q&A included Elon discussing Twitter features for sending crypto and fiat.

In November, Twitter filed with the U.S. Treasury Department to be recognized as a "money services" provider.

X, the Everything App

In recent interviews, Elon has repeated his vision to turn Twitter into a platform that caters to everyday IRL and financial needs.

In this interview from last month, Elon described a Twitter where users could send money between accounts and access intra-app financial services.

And last night, Elon restated his intention to use Twitter as an "accelerant" to making an everything app, in an interview with a (totally unprepared? 🤷‍♀️) BBC journalist.

During the interview, Elon was asked if the transition to X Corp was made for technical or legal reasons.

In response, Elon confirmed that the change was far more than a legal checkbox, and was closely related to X App.

"That's the goal," he said. "That's what we're working towards."

You can listen to the entire interview on Twitter spaces – if you have a strong cringe reflex. 😂

Notable Tweets ✅

On the web3 wire

Azuki thread hints at Beanz IRL toys coming soon 🧸Following the success of Pudgy Penguins' soft toy launch, a collaboration between creative studio LINE FRIENDS and Azuki is likely to result in a range of Beanz physical toys, according to major Azuki holder, Dingaling.

NFTNow's 100 💯The NFT news site releases its 2nd annual list of the 'top 100' creators and influencers in the space.

Unreal Engine Real-Time Explainers 🎥If the latest boom in AI video has got you interested in animation, Unreal Engine has put together an accessible beginner's guide to using their free, industry-leading animation software.

Is Google trying to create Westworld?

Westworld is Michael Crichton's vision of AI becoming self-conscious. His movie follows a group of guests inside a Western-themed role-playing park, inhabited by a cast of advanced AI androids.

Predictably, things inside Westworld go about as well as they do in Crichton's other theme-park thriller, Jurrasic Park... 🦖💀

You probably caught some of HBO and the Nolan family's recent remake of Westworld – and it looks like Google employees were fans, too.

In a recently-released study, researchers from Stanford and Google explored what happens when multiple AI agents are put in a sandbox and left to interact.

They made their own 2D RPG version of Westworld called Smallville, populating it with 25 AI characters, powered by a custom version of Chat-GPT.

Just like Westworld, the researchers programmed the AI characters with names, storylines, and the ability to remember their actions.

They gave each character a job (shopkeeper, professor) plus a daily routine.

Then, they let the characters loose to explore Smallville and interact with each other.

Here's what they observed:

• Without being programmed, characters spread information across the town through social interactions and passing conversations.

• Characters also made efforts to get to know each other

• Using those social networks, the characters coordinated with each other to plan collaboratively.

Here's a great thread from @nonmayorpete, summarizing the rest of what went down in Smallville.

If you're one of the 6 people who stuck with Westworld past the first (phenomenal) season, you might have noticed the HBO show making another salient AI prediction.

Check out this season 4 clip of Dolores, now programmed as "Christina", using what looks a lot like an AI text-to-video generator:

Web3 artist of the week: Noah Kocher

Here's another profile of a web3 artist we think deserves as much attention as possible.

This week: Noah Kocher

Noah Kocher is a multi-media artist from Tennessee. He uses digital collage and manipulation techniques to produce swirling, liquified compositions – which he describes as "forgotten dreams."

We like how Noah's art feels weighty and textured, even when viewed on a screen.

Here are a few pieces:

Minted work

• SuperRare

• Foundation

Links

• Twitter

• Instagram

• Personal site/store

If you see Noah around town at NFT.NYC this week, ask him for a limited edition sticker!

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Meme of the day

Have a good day! 👋

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