($22M in Series A Funding)

Metaverse firm Katmai has raised a $22M Series A funding round, merging real and virtual worlds. “Our goal isn’t to be meeting software. Our goal is to say, ‘Hey, this is a concurrent session. It’s an always-on thing, and it’s a third place to be together,’” said founder Erik Braund, adding that Katmai’s metaverse version of the office is “designed to offer businesses a competitive edge.”

Katmai has built a platform that merges the 3D world and audio-video conferencing, enabling people to gather for more life-like interactions.

In terms of technology, Katmai’s platform boasts an impressively low demand on resources, seamlessly integrating video conferencing within custom 3D environments and delivering all its experiences within a browser.