Sony Japan unveiled Mocopi on Tuesday, a set of wearable motion-tracking sensors that captures user movements that are mirrored by virtual avatars on the metaverse or virtual and augmented reality platforms.
See related article: S. Korea releases ethical guidelines for the metaverse
Fast facts
- Mocopi has six bands that a user can wear on their ankles, wrists, head and hip.
- It is expected to come with its own smartphone application and a software development kit.
- “Mocopi creates highly accurate motion measurement with a small number of sensors, freeing VTubers and creators involved in movie and animation production from time and place constraints,” Sony wrote in its press release.
- VTubers, which is short for virtual YouTube streamers, are internet streamers that gained prominence in Japan for providing online entertainment using virtual avatars.
- “Virtual idols” such as Vocaloid have been highly popular since the mid-2000s, influencing modern-day Vtubers like Gawr Gura, who has 4.2 million subscribers on YouTube.
- Mocopi will hit the Japanese market in late January 2023 for 49,500 Japanese yen (US$357).
See related article: The metaverse is already here. What’s holding back the party?