At CES 2025, Lotte Group, one of South Korea’s largest conglomerates, announced the launch of Lotte Caliverse, an AI-powered 3D entertainment experience built on the Arbitrum blockchain. This initiative marks a significant step into blockchain technology for the conglomerate, which operates over 90 businesses across retail, chemicals, food, financial services, and entertainment.

About Lotte Caliverse

Lotte Caliverse is designed to provide users with a next-generation metaverse-like experience, leveraging Epic Games Unreal Engine 5 for its 3D visuals. The platform allows users to shop at virtual stores, attend live music concerts, play interactive games, and even create their own virtual worlds in the future. Through integration with the Arbitrum Layer 2 Ethereum blockchain, the platform ensures high-speed, seamless on-chain transactions and latency-free interactions.

Arbitrum has established itself as a leading blockchain solution, favored for its performance, scalability, and ecosystem. In 2024, the Arbitrum Gaming ecosystem saw remarkable growth, with a 72% increase in active titles and an expanding network of proprietary Orbit chains. Lotte Caliverse aims to tap into this ecosystem to enhance user experiences and attract new audiences. Lotte Caliverse bridges physical and digital worlds, offering unique opportunities:

• Shopping Experiences: Users can shop at digital stores such as Givenchy, MCM, and Lotte Duty-Free, with the option of receiving items delivered in the real world.
• Live Entertainment: The platform hosts concerts featuring artists like K-Pop group NMIXX and DJ ALOK, as well as music stages co-developed with Tomorrowland.
• Gaming and Interactivity: Activities range from dance battles to immersive games like "Caliverse: Invasion," where players fend off alien invaders. Future updates will enable users to design their own games.
• Advanced Technologies: Real-time 3D Chroma Key AI and glasses-free 3D visualizations were demonstrated at CES, promising groundbreaking experiences for users.

Lotte Caliverse Invasion

Strategic Vision and Collaboration

Kima Kim, CEO of Caliverse, emphasized the platform's goal to merge Lotte’s strong retail history with blockchain innovations to create unparalleled entertainment and shopping experiences. The alliance with Arbitrum was celebrated by Steven Goldfeder, CEO of Offchain Labs, who highlighted the blockchain's low latency and robust infrastructure as essential components for a high-performance virtual world.

This partnership further cements Arbitrum’s growing influence in the web3 ecosystem. The collaboration follows a recent alliance with Ubisoft, demonstrating Arbitrum’s momentum in powering blockchain-based gaming and entertainment platforms. For Lotte Group, the venture underscores its ambition to lead innovation in the metaverse and blockchain space.

Early Access Only

Future Developments

Lotte Caliverse is accessible today via its official website, with additional features like its 3D film and app scheduled for release in early 2025. The initiative is a step forward for Lotte Group, founded in 1948 and currently operating in 30 countries, as it expands its footprint in emerging technologies.

By merging blockchain technology with immersive 3D experiences, Lotte Caliverse promises to redefine virtual entertainment and retail, appealing to over 40 million users worldwide.

Source: GamesBeat