Jacob Loewenstein on Spatial and the Metaverse for Culture | Unreleased NFTS.WTF Interview

Previously unreleased: this interview is published here for the first time. Jacob Loewenstein, head of growth at Spatial, on building "the metaverse for culture": art exhibitions, fashion shows, and concerts anyone can open with a click on web, mobile, or VR. Interviewed by David Cash. Book David to host, moderate, or speak: https://davidcash.ca Recorded live in April 2022 at NFC Lisbon, Jacob talks with David Cash about how Spatial went from an augmented reality collaboration tool to a home for NFT galleries once artists started building there on their own. He tells the story of Krista Kim's Mars House arriving on Spatial, why Spatial stopped waiting on headsets and focused on web and mobile, and how it mixes Web2 product habits with Web3 ownership. They discuss onboarding, creators who teach other creators, why Spatial chose not to sell land, interoperability and avoiding ecosystem lock-in, a transparent roadmap borrowed from DAOs, lessons from GeoCities, and the technical work of making 3D render well on any device. The conversation closes on avatars, standard file formats, what high fashion needs from the metaverse, and Jacob's prediction that young people will own large digital closets. Chapters 00:00 Intro: Jacob Loewenstein of Spatial 0:40 Spatial, the metaverse for culture 1:50 Krista Kim and Mars House as a first touchpoint 2:20 A Web2 company that is fully NFT compatible 3:08 From AR collaboration tool to consumer platform 4:19 VR, then web and mobile: meeting users where they are 5:06 Artists start building galleries on their own 5:42 Krista Kim's Mars House: the aha moment 7:03 MetaMask, Web2 DNA, and Web3 ownership 8:21 A metaverse that works on your phone 9:37 Designing for first-timers and autoplay tours 11:19 Onboarding without full decentralization 12:15 Listening to the Web3 community first 13:33 Creators who onboard other creators 14:26 Treat your community with love 15:00 Why Spatial doesn't sell land 16:31 The open metaverse and interoperability 18:24 Avoiding lock-in, and the token question 19:29 Borrowing a transparent roadmap from DAOs 21:01 Lessons from GeoCities 22:21 Experimental but ruthless 23:28 Unity, WebGL, and cloud rendering 25:09 Designing for different devices and bandwidth 26:31 Betting on the web browser 27:23 Making the experience great today 28:26 Identity and avatars in the metaverse 30:10 PFPs, scarce identity, and 3D avatars 31:23 Standard avatar models and file formats 32:34 What high fashion needs from the metaverse 33:57 Prediction: bigger digital closets 34:37 Takeaways: listen and stay open 35:46 Where to find Spatial Key topics • Spatial and the metaverse for culture • Virtual art galleries and NFT exhibitions • Krista Kim's Mars House • Accessibility on web, mobile, and VR • Web2 product design meets Web3 ownership • Community-led onboarding • Business models without land sales • Interoperability and the open metaverse • Transparent roadmaps and building in public • Browser 3D, Unity, and cloud rendering • Avatars, Ready Player Me, and VRM • Digital fashion and digital closets Speakers • David Cash, interviewer and editor-in-chief, NFTS.WTF • Jacob Loewenstein, head of growth, Spatial In their words "Once we met people where they were, they started telling us how they wanted to use the metaverse." Jacob Loewenstein "We're experimental, but we're also ruthless." Jacob Loewenstein Recording details Recorded April 2022 at NFC Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal. Previously unreleased. Published 2026 with chapters and captions. How to cite APA: Cash, D. (2022). Jacob Loewenstein on Spatial and the metaverse for culture [Video]. YouTube.    • Jacob Loewenstein on Spatial and the Metav...   Chicago: Cash, David. "Jacob Loewenstein on Spatial and the Metaverse for Culture." Recorded April 2022, Lisbon. YouTube video, 36:11.    • Jacob Loewenstein on Spatial and the Metav...  . About NFTS.WTF NFTS.WTF was a Web3 culture publication and interview series edited by David Cash. It covered artists, collectors, and builders during the 2021–2022 NFT boom. It ran for two years and closed after a board decision by the NFTS DAO, which left many of its interviews unpublished. Watch next More NFTS.WTF interviews:    • Interviews with David Cash   Links Cash Labs: https://cashlabs.io Instagram:   / davidcash888   LinkedIn:   / davidcash888   Subscribe for the full archive of conversations on technology, art, fashion, and culture. #Spatial #Metaverse #KristaKim #NFCLisbon #DigitalFashion #NFTSWTF