Fitness 3.0? Active gaming and blockchain meet the metaverse for a next-gen VR workout, says OliveX CEO Keith Rumjahn, where staying in shape is more than a game
Keith Rumjahn says entertainment habits are changing and the CEO and co-founder of OliveX has identified three major trends.
“More people attend esports events than the Olympics and World Cup, and other sporting events,” he claims. “No 2, is that gaming is the biggest entertainment industry. So people used to watch TV and go to movies – but now the biggest entertainment is gaming, because it’s like a movie, but you get to control the movie.”
The third, he says, is virtual concerts, as we saw with Travis Scott and Ariana Grande.
With his metaverse OliveX already in 170 countries, Rumjahn has created real world experiences that merge with the digital space. He explains how his metaverse is the latest evolution of the fitness industry.
“It went from the Jane Fondas of this world to live streaming on demand to connecting with fitness. We had these bikes, treadmills and now you can train with an instructor,” says Rumjahn.
“Now fitness 3.0 is fitness as a game. Games such as Ring Fit sold out during the pandemic. Then there is Swept, a virtual cycling Tour de France, and there is the new Pokémon Go.”
He explains how his metaverse has revved things up even further – “fitness 4.0”, using blockchain to interconnect different games, keeping track of all achievements, with the player able to use their rewards from one game to another.
“By using blockchain, let’s say I spent 100 hours locking up a special Pokémon item. Let’s say it’s a red T-shirt. I can now use that in my Swift game. I can use that in my Ring Fit game, I can use that in all these different games. Then the second component is unlike a game where you just sit down and press buttons: you have to power your game avatar with physical data,” he goes on.
“Everyone is tracking a lot of things, their steps, their heart rate and the distance they run. So this data can be gamified. And it can be used to power fitness games. So the dream is, instead of us just sitting down pressing a bunch of buttons for five hours, we sprinkle [fitness in] with some of that gaming addiction to make you actually exercise a bit.
“So fitness as a game is really what this generation is growing up with.”
Besides all the technology, he finds time for “old school” activities, like walking for an hour a few times a week for some solitude. He usually plays old-school strategy games like Connect with his two young children, and his wife likes them to read books. But he also gets inspired by his kids – when they come home with a new fad, such as Pop It – and he watches what games younger kids are into to get ideas for his virtual world.
Keith Rumjahn’s preferred watch: Rolex Submariner
“My father in-law owned a couple of Rolex shops. He’s sold those businesses now but I got a Rolex Submariner for my wedding – I still wear it today.”
- Fitness games – or ‘gamercising’ – boomed in popularity during the pandemic, while esports and virtual concerts are huge money makers in the new normal
- OliveX co-founder Keith Rumjahn imagines a world where blockchain currencies will power an integrated and lucrative metaverse where the limits of reality blur