May 9, 2025 • 31 mins
Julie Smithson is the CEO of MetaVRse and co-founder of 6ix Ventures, a mission-driven family of companies building an ecosystem for the next generation of educational innovation. Recognized as a pioneering entrepreneur, Julie brings a unique blend of hands-on experience from launching 200+ immersive projects and a personal commitment to preparing future leaders to thrive in a world shaped by emerging technology.
Key Takeaways:
- Family of Purpose-Driven Ventures: 6ix Ventures unites MetaVRse, Unlimited Awesome, and a sovereign data solution, all under a mission to inspire and educate the next generation-to think and act with social, economic, and environmental sustainability, using cutting-edge tools.
- Immersive, Curriculum-Integrated Learning: Unlimited Awesome tackles the gaps left by traditional education: perseverance, teamwork, social impact, environmental literacy, and financial skills. Their curriculum is delivered through immersive, interactive digital experiences powered by MetaVRse.
- Experimental R&D, Powered by Clients: 200+ MetaVRse projects with global brands like Mars Wrigley, spanning healthcare training, consumer engagement, and gamified learning have fueled innovation and validated new models for spatial education and community.
- Technological Convergence: Julie’s vision fuses spatial computing, AI, and blockchain/Web3 to build learning ecosystems and commerce that mirror how youth already play, collaborate, and transact online-bringing game mechanics, digital rewards, and avatars into education and training.
- Digital Identity & Sovereign Data: Avatars become not just game characters, but digital identities, linking learning, collaboration, and commerce. Julie advocates for sovereign data ownership, enabling users to carry their credentials and assets across platforms while retaining control.
- Community-Building & Inclusion: Julie is also a co-founder of XR Women, building the world’s largest global network of women in spatial computing. She believes the future of education and commerce must be inclusive, collaborative, and values-driven.
About Julie Smithson
Julie Smithson’s personal mission is to ‘inspire and educate people to think and act in a socially, economically and environmentally responsible way’.
Julie is the Co-Founder and CEO of METAVRSE, a 3D creation platform the spatial web, akin to ‘Canva’ for immersive experiences. Julie Smithson is also Co-Founder of Unlimited Awesome, a venture focused on implementing success principles to drive digital innovation.
As Co-Founder of XR Women, Julie Smithson leads the world’s largest global community dedicated to empowering women in virtual platforms. Over the past four years, she and her team have organized more than 192 immersive events, featuring prominent women speakers from the industry and engaging a diverse, growing membership of over 1,200 women across 60+ countries.
A "glow up" signifies a positive transformation, reflecting the journey of becoming a better, more successful version of oneself.
At The Tech Glow Up, we humanize the startup and innovation landscape by focusing on the essential aspects of the entrepreneurial journey. Groundbreaking ideas are often ahead of their time, making resilience and perseverance vital for founders and product leaders.
In our podcast, we engage with innovators to discuss their transformative ideas, the challenges they face, and how they create value for future success.
If you're a founder or product leader seeking your own glow up, or a seasoned entrepreneur with stories to share, we invite you to join our guest list via this link.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
nathan-c---they-them-_1_0 (00:00):
Hello and welcome to The Glow Up-
(00:02):
fabulous conversations withinnovative minds.
I'm Nathan C and today I amchatting with Julie Smithson,
CEO of MetaVRse and co-founderof 6ix Ventures.
Julie, it is so good to see youtoday.
Thanks for joining me.
julie-smithson_1_04-17-2 (00:18):
Thanks for having me and, helping glow
up your podcast.
I'm excited to be here.
My name is Julie Smithson and Iam the CEO of MetaVRse and
co-founder of 6ix Ventures.
6ix Ventures is our familycompany where we've been
building for, many years.
We decided to put, all of ourcompanies and the mission of
(00:39):
what we're doing under oneumbrella.
My mission is to inspire andeducate the next generation of
future leaders.
To think and act in a socially,economically, environmentally
sustainable way.
We're gonna do that with,emerging technologies.
That's the mantra of what we'rebuilding.
So under 6ix Ventures, we haveUnlimited Awesome, MetaVRse,
(01:00):
and, we're also working on asovereign data solution as well,
for the education system.
So that's the big story thereunder the 6ix Ventures umbrella.
nathan-c---they-them-_1_04-17 (01:10):
I love this idea of a family of
serial entrepreneurs,recognizing the numerous,
companies and intellectualproperties that you have all
sort of fitting together under atheme and, building, that
umbrella, that parent that cansupport them all.
(01:31):
Literally a family of, productsand services, for the family of
entrepreneurs.
Can you talk a little bit moreabout that journey to envision
and realize 6ix Ventures and, tostart this new vision for, that
core vision that you're leadingwith.
julie-smithson_1_04-17-2025_1 (01:44):
I think our journey started when
my kids were young and nine, 10years old.
My older daughter created herfirst company solving, an ugly
tan line problem, and she builtout, The Love Sandals.
that leave a heart-shaped tanline and sold over 3000 pairs of
shoes.
That was when she was, at agenine.
(02:05):
we realized that with the futureof technology and education
today.
the kids were not learning whatthey needed to in order to see
their potential and to learn thethings that they're not teaching
in schools today.
So that became our big missionwith Unlimited Awesome.
And that we needed to build outa curriculum that taught
(02:27):
perseverance and criticalproblem solving teamwork,
collaboration, social impactenvironmental sustainability, as
well as financial literacy, allthe things that they never
taught in school.
So we put a curriculum together,called The Unlimited Awesome
Program and Academy.
At the same time we werebuilding the MetaVRse and we
(02:49):
started MetaVRse in 2016, waybefore the metaverse trend,
happened.
Today we actually own a wordtrademark on the word MetaVRse.
But in the last, nine years, wehave built over 200 immersive
projects, to understand thetechnology with spatial
computing and how are peoplelearning and educating,
(03:10):
training, how do consumers andretailers play together in this
space Avatars are part of it, 3Dassets and interactions and that
sort of thing.
So that's what MetaVRse becamethis game engine and almost like
a research hub for us using andworking with our clients to
build and innovate brand newsolutions.
(03:33):
Taking all of that learning andlessons and the product from
MetaVRse.
We knew that it would lenditself to become the virtual
campus for Unlimited.
And that's where we are today,putting this educational
curriculum together with theMetaVRse engine, to provide, the
curriculum to support andinspire that next generation to
(03:56):
have the skill sets andknowledge of both, what they
need to know aboutentrepreneurship and innovation,
but also using the technologythat is within our ecosystem
today.
nathan-c---they-them-_1_04 (04:09):
Wow, I gotta take a moment to just,
absorb a little bit.
This is fantastic, right?
Like, every founder storyusually starts with that pain
point and to see this pain in,the future you want to create
for your children and, helpingthem, start on their
entrepreneurial journey.
(04:30):
now that problem becomes soclear and I think I wanna dive
into a little bit more aboutusing MetaVRse, understanding
that this vision was gonna be inan immersive space, was gonna
leverage cutting edge technologyand then using client work using
partnerships, using theseprojects with brands to really
(04:51):
test, understand and validate,how to use, what do people need,
how are people really working inthere so that you can take these
things to the next level.
Like one, great job, workingwith clients to pay for the R&D,
that you're looking to build inthe future.
Wow, what a great, data set.
(05:13):
200 projects is, I think Mr.
Beast's advice is, you know, youwanna do something new, try a
hundred times, and you're boundto learn something.
Can you talk a little bit aboutwhat you learned as you worked
through these 200 spatialprojects and how that's impacted
the vision that you have today?
julie-smithson_1_04 (05:30):
Absolutely! My whole who I am today lends
itself to the experience youhave when you build something
for the first time.
And, proud to say, I built allof these projects 200 plus with
my team, but also 12 worldfirsts.
to tie that To innovation is,where we built everything for
the first time and worked withour clients.
(05:51):
We learned so much when weimplemented, you know, training
systems for one of the biggestmedical companies in the world
and transforming all of theirtraining applications into
virtual labs.
And even putting gamificationbehind that, especially when we
were dealing with a consumerexperience that we did with Mars
(06:12):
Wrigley, and the"Juicyverse".
And then you start to add allthese technologies together, the
gamification in the interactivespace, obviously builds out a
faster retention model oflearning, as well as engagement,
but also introducing avatars andhow, a code of conduct needs to
(06:33):
be implemented into these spacesbecause it's a brand new place
to meet and connect and tointeract as well as you, you
know, you're dealing withproduct purchases and designs
and things like that.
So, a more spatial understandingand awareness about what this
technology can do that tiesitself into learning and that
(06:54):
retention and engagement on theother side for that user became
the magical recipe, that, lendsitself to education, to
training, to marketing andcollaboration.
And those were the core piecesthat we focused on from the
MetaVRse perspective to learnmore about as we saw the changes
(07:14):
that were needed in theeducation system that would lend
itself to the curriculum and howwe're gonna build this out.
nathan-c---they-them-_1_04-1 (07:20):
So I love that.
This theme of like how gamemechanics, engagement, creating
space for community are allthings that, a brand desperately
wants as well as a core, driverof successful, education
experiences is such a fantasticinsight and a great way to touch
(07:41):
so many aspects of innovation.
When you're balancing thisstrategic long-term vision for
transforming education, plus theshort-term demands of, running a
family of companies, how do you,plan for and measure, the impact
of the work that you're doing onthe road to this vision?
julie-smithson_1_04-17-20 (08:04):
Yeah, absolutely.
And seeing how the technologies,started to converge.
Right.
And you know, I'll use the termWeb3.
It's not quite the term that youuse when you're pitching
customers'cause they don't quiteunderstand that.
But it is the convergence of theimmersive spatial computing
space with AI and then withblockchain.
(08:27):
And we actually did a worldfirst with Mars Wrigley with the
"Juicyverse" and the Starburstcandy by building out the first
in the world IRL to URL, to IRLproject, that was consumer
facing that led the consumer toa product purchase.
Using gamification and AI andthe blockchain all within that
(08:51):
one experience gave me a hugesense of understanding of how
this technology is engaging andrewarding, as well as providing
the user with either knowledgeor, the satisfaction of
understanding or connecting witha brand and what they're trying
to get across in theirmessaging.
So, it was a huge learningexperience for me that these
(09:13):
elements just, they need to lendthemselves into education in
order to engage the nextgeneration who are already on
Fortnite and Roblox andexpecting this type of
ecosystem, moving into theirworld where they're rewarded.
for, the levels that theyachieve and, whether they
collaborate with somebody nextdoor or from across the world.
(09:36):
This technology lends itself toopening the cultural
understanding and buildingempathy and skills that we need
as we're moving into this fourthindustrial revolution of change,
of how digitization is gonnachange the way that we're
learning and we're teaching.
nathan-c---they-them-_1_04- (09:51):
The impact of any marketing
campaign, is almost alwayssales.
Bravo, for having an IRL to URLto IRL, right?
That's a pretty complicated,tech, based workflow to be
driving actual sales, withimmersive and, Web3, products
(10:13):
is, stellar.
I love that you very casuallyalso were measuring the impact
of your work in world firsts.
Just the subtle, like first tomarket, right?
But that you very quickly areturning those into like, we
needed to know that so we coulddo this for this vision with
education.
There's something that youmentioned avatars like two or
(10:34):
three times.
In the immersive space as you orI, I think it would be really
interesting to hear what did youdiscover about avatars and that
personalized, nature, that is soimportant to this model for
global learning?
julie-smithson_1_04-17-20 (10:49):
Yeah, avatars really open up the
conversation of digital identityand for years, and I'll give an
example, I didn't just learnabout avatars through MetaVRse,
but also with XR Women.
And, another title I hold to myname is that I'm co-founder of
XR Women.
We're the largest group of womenworking in immersive and spatial
computing in the world.
(11:09):
We cover over 60 countries ofrepresentation and every week we
meet immersive as avatarslearning from each other.
And it's a truly proud part ofmy life that I am a part of this
community.
Anybody listening who wants tojoin, we meet every Wednesday
immersed in the space.
When I say immersed, it's notjust going into Google.
(11:30):
It's not just going into Teams.
It's representing yourself as anavatar and going into these
immersive virtual worlds wherepeople meet and collaborate.
But we also meet and learn, witha full presentation.
Avatars are kind of crazylooking still.
They're very uncanny.
They don't quite look like us,even when they try to look like
(11:51):
us.
But they do represent your voicein these spaces.
And when you start to engagewith other people and
collaborate, you have anidentity as an avatar in that
space.
And I think there's a lot oflearning to be done around
digital identity.
And the human agency part aboutthat.
(12:12):
As humans, we've always goneinto these platforms, with our
email.
And checking, you know, not justour email checking, but we're
logging in with an email.
And that email, depending onyour domain, of your email, is
who owns your data and who ownsyou as you're going through your
work.
As you're engaging with people,as you're posting things, as
(12:34):
you're creating files, you'resaving files.
It's all tied to your email.
And as we start to take the stepinto our technology, I always
say we're about to take a stepinto the z axis and step into
our technology as an avatar.
We have our identity that moveswith us and is with us wherever
we go.
(12:54):
And as humans, we need to takeownership of our own identity.
Pay closer attention, to whatwe're engaging in, what we're
learning and what we'retransacting at that time.
You know, we haven't even talkedabout buying things in the
metaverse but that's starting tohappen.
If I wanna buy a pair of digitalshoes that go onto my avatar's
(13:16):
feet, but also buy those samepair of shoes that come to my
door.
I'm using my profile, myidentity to make that purchase
and understanding theconnectivity of the email right
to that transaction.
Or say you and I, Nathan go intoa space and we have a meeting
and we decide on some reallyimportant things that we're
(13:39):
working on, you know, that's allconfirmed and decided by that,
that identity that's linked toyour email.
And I think that as we'reengaging in these spatial
computing experiences, more andmore, people will have to
really, connect to who they arein the space, because we're
gonna start to add a wallet tocollect the badges, to, collect
(14:02):
a coupon after we've gonethrough that game or we've
learned something.
So, there's this whole learningcurve that I think humanity is
going to face in a way that, youknow, we're all used to just
saying,"Oh, just use thisemail." But that email is
really, really linked to who youare as a person and the actions
(14:23):
that you have in these metaverselocations, whether it's my world
or any of the other worlds thatare out there.
So, there's this huge educationlesson that is around this and
digital identity is at the core.
Actually human identity is atthe core!
nathan-c---they-them-_1_04-17 (14:38):
I thought we were gonna get deep
into right, the personalizedconnection.
A lot of the common aspects, ofan avatar, which you did touch
on and I love.
Avatars are our digitalidentity.
And that identity and that sortof record of that identity, the
(14:59):
trust of that identity, theagency of that identity, either
digital or physical or hybrid,is very important.
Started to ring very clear andas you were talking about, hey,
you know, everything's connectedto your Gmail address and like,
how do you feel about that beingthe source of truth for you?
(15:23):
You know, I was listening tonews podcasts this morning
talking about how like UScitizens are having their
devices, you know, searched and,scraped electronically as
they're entering, the country.
Because our government the USgovernment has decided that
that's an okay thing to do.
The lawyer who was representingsomebody, you know, a number of
(15:47):
clients with human rights caseswas talking about how his entire
work life is on that phone.
And, you know, the danger or therisk that handing it over to the
feds could potentially mean forhim and his clients.
So the risk that I'm hearingabout identity, about putting
everything in one place aboutsort of being lax about how you
(16:08):
understand your digitalfootprint and your digital tech
stack is a real danger that weare experiencing today.
Makes me wanna ask the question.
Can you talk more about thissovereign data center and how
that fits into this vision foronline identity learning and
some of these next commerce,stages as well?
julie-smithson_1_04-17-20 (16:29):
Yeah, absolutely.
I think, the conversation ofdata, we've been talking about
it for a while, but theconversation is definitely
heightening.
Marketing companies are startingto take your data and repurpose
it and reuse it or sell it andalso the conversation about how,
where are we gonna store allthis data and where is it stored
and who owns me?
(16:50):
When you really dig deep intothose conversations, it can
really stress you out becauseyou don't know who really owns
you or where things are keptwhere that file storage is
linked to.
I think one of the biggestlessons I had was just, having
my identity taken away for twoweeks last year was the biggest
eyeopener for me inunderstanding that whole premise
(17:12):
of who owns me and how muchcontrol I have.
But also that email is also whatelse it was connected to, you
know, whether it was my bankaccounts or just, you know, a
school login for the kids.
You know, all of a sudden justunderstanding this whole
identity and how you're linkedto things is truly an eye-opener
(17:34):
and I encourage everybody toreally go through that inventory
process, of learning your ownpersonal tech stack.
When it comes to data, you know,we've nonchalantly clicked"I
agree" at the bottom of all ofthe things that we've signed up
for, whether it be a new phoneplan or you're signing up for a
subscription of one tool oranother.
(17:55):
But now it comes down to, youknow, where is that data being
stored?
And with Unlimited Awesome wesaw this writing on the wall of
the big tech companies,obviously owning everything that
we do, we say, we post, weshare, whether it's Facebook
Messenger or on X and yourmessaging there and Instagram.
(18:16):
All of these different socialplatforms have really taken over
and owned us in ways that makeit very difficult for us to
leave.
I for one, have my entire kids'digital profiles on Facebook and
for me, I don't wanna lose thatplatform.
So the approach that we'retaking with Unlimited Awesome is
that we want to build our ownsovereign data center.
(18:39):
So the ecosystem that we plan tobuild with Unlimited Awesome
through the MetaVRse Engine, theMetaVRse Engine being an open
source tool as well, that is notowned by any of the big tech
companies and could,intentionally be an open source
tool for many.
But in the Unlimited Awesomecurriculum, the plan is, to have
(19:01):
the data from the students beinghosted, by our own sovereign
data center.
We're talking brick and mortarhere in Ontario, Canada is where
our first one will beimplemented, and then we'll work
on it throughout the world.
But we're actually looking at aclean solution and one where
we'll take the energies and putthem back into other solutions
so that we're essentiallybuilding a carbon free, data
(19:23):
solution.
And that is what we need mostwhen it comes to the Earth's
sustainability.
nathan-c---they-them-_1_04 (19:29):
It's so key.
Honestly, if I were to boil downmy entire experience working
with, enterprise companiesaround innovative technologies,
I would say the biggest blockerby volume was"Where is my data?"
And I need control of my data inways that you tiny company
(19:52):
aren't thinking about.
So, I think almost anybody, thatyou would engage in the future,
is gonna want this.
And it's very interesting howtrust, transparency, and
control, all come together tokind of deliver that safe
digital, identity andexperience.
(20:13):
Julie, we are getting to the funpart now! We've talked about the
vision.
The show is called The Glow Up,which is a notable
transformation, rebirth, aleveling up of sorts.
So I'm very curious, what's theglow up you're hoping to make
with 6ix Ventures and MetaVRse,in the next say, six months?
julie-smithson_1_04-17-20 (20:33):
Yeah, so, our big plan is to launch a
beta of the Unlimited Awesome,program and, to kickstart the
first round of students thatwould be, engaged into the
curriculum itself.
One of the things that I'vepersonally been doing is going
through the curriculum myselfand the first element or Castle
of Success is aboutperseverance.
(20:56):
And I think this is somethingthat, as a takeaway for anybody
who's listening to The Glow Upis to glow yourself up with your
own perseverance.
One of the things that.
I do on a daily basis is agratitude journal, and it seems
like it's very minor, but itcertainly sets your mind up for
every day and putting your mindand your heart in the best way
(21:17):
to move forward through thistime of exponential growth.
And And I'm not just talkingabout the gratitude journal.
Where I personally, you know, Iwrite down three things that I'm
grateful for and three thingsthat I'd like to have happen
throughout the day.
And then I do an affirmation ofmyself and then at the end of
the day, just checking in and,you know, did I reach my goals?
That's just the entrepreneurshipside, the technology side, the
(21:40):
AI side, all of these new tools,the innovation, the speed at
which things are happening,that's another pace as well.
So we're seriously going throughthe stage of exponential growth,
that if we don't have the rightmindset and the health, the
wellness about ourselves to beable to cope, how are we
supposed to make those criticaldecisions and really start to
(22:02):
dig into innovation and problemsolve?
So that's why we say that withUnlimited Awesome.
the perseverance part, you know,doing the gratitude journal,
getting exercise, eating right,having that physical exercise,
being able to deep breathethrough the stressful times to
pace yourself out, but also to.
Have a side of"humanics" aboutyou.
(22:23):
And this is a term that I liketo bring up.
It's one that I learned, youknow, five, six years ago from
Joseph Aoun's book called"Robot-Proof." And"humanics" to me is
the fact that I know you, Nathanas a human on the other side of
this connection, and I'm gonnatreat you with respect and, you
know, honor our friendship andconnection.
(22:44):
But I also understand that we'vegot a platform here that's
recording us, and I understandthat you're gonna take this data
and you're gonna share it outwith everybody.
So I understand this trifecta,that is taking place.
You know, we all need to leadinto this state of"humanics" and
have cultural empathy aboutwhere everybody's coming from.
I always say everybody has theirown story.
(23:05):
Everybody has their own journey.
There's so many things happeningin the world that you just don't
even know what's happening onthe other side with that other
person.
Again, grounding yourself withperseverance and putting
yourself in the right mindset ofwellness to be able to
communicate and have healthyconversations.
Being able to think throughinnovation and creative problem
solve, it all stems from havinga healthy mind state.
(23:29):
That's kind of the biggesttakeaway I think for this Glow
Up session, that I could sharewith everybody.
So, yeah, be mindful, be presentwith yourself and, treat others
with the same respect.
nathan-c---they-them-_1_04-1 (23:39):
Oh my goodness.
This idea that shaping the mindsof future business leaders and,
digitally, adept humans, that weneed to start by giving
ourselves a glow up, making surethat we connect with our
humanity and, that as foundersand entrepreneurs, we stay
(24:05):
connected.
to our wins and our balance, ourgoals.
That humanity is the thing thatwill help us, persevere, is such
a lovely offer.
To start sharing thiscurriculum, to start, building
and seeing Unlimited Awesome inthe world, like what a fantastic
(24:27):
way, to start to introduce that!Heck yes! With big goals, also
sometimes means long horizons.
So how do you, you kind ofalluded to it, in this daily
practice of really, taking itday by day, but how will you
know in the future, that you'vemade it, that, your vision for,
(24:49):
6ix Ventures and UnlimitedAwesome and MetaVRse, that
you've achieved that, how willyou know?
julie-smithson_1_04-17-20 (24:54):
Well, I think that you need to
celebrate every day.
So I would say that I've alreadykind of made it in my own way so
far, even though UnlimitedAwesome is not fully launched.
I've celebrated my own, I'vemade it to today, right?
I think my journey, just likeeverybody else has a journey,
but mine has been one of growthin my confidence, especially
(25:16):
over the last year just due toentrepreneurial events that have
taken place, as for UnlimitedAwesome, the fact is, is that we
we're seeing a lot of peoplehave conversations about
education already.
Everybody is top of mind rightnow for education and, and
seeing that people, and knowingpeople are are, are welcoming
(25:42):
the program that we've beenbuilding and putting together,
It, it's, it's heartwarmingbecause we have a solution.
We have a solution for a neweducation system.
We know how we need to deployit.
The next generation of studentsare already in Fortnite and
Roblox.
They're already expecting aninteractive gamified life.
You know, coming out of thatgame and, you know, schools
(26:06):
competing with Fortnite, youknow, you just, you need to be
of equal, stature when it comesto engaging with students.
And so building this out, in thenext six months we're raising
money for, a bigger fund for theUnlimited Awesome Academy.
Seeing it going live, that willbe a moment for me, right?
(26:27):
Seeing students being engagedwith it.
But we're already seeing thetraction of investors and
community starting to adopt whatwe're doing because there is no
solution out there that's likewhat we've thought of and we're
curating, some of the smartestmentors we've got.
We're aiming for a thousand thisyear, but we've got well over a
(26:47):
hundred, of amazing, peoplecommitted to mentoring this new
curriculum and being a part ofthis solution that will set up
the next generation to discovertheir fullest human potential.
nathan-c---they-them-_ (26:59):
Amazing! A thousand new mentors! Julie,
every episode of The Glow Upmakes time and space to, give a
shout out or a spotlight to acommunity group that's doing
great work.
Is there a nonprofit or aninnovative project or a group
that you think could use alittle extra attention?
julie-smithson_1_04-17-2025_1 (27:20):
I would say XR Women.
We're a nonprofit, doingincredible work.
We have surrounded ourselveswith a global community of
knowledge and passion andinnovation and curiosity.
We've got two student chapters,one with the Ringling, College
of Art and Design and SCAD whichis the Savannah College of Art
and Design.
The future for XR Women isreally this community hub of
(27:43):
learning and it's learning aboutimmersive tech and how we can
use it for humanity's bestapplications.
That is where I would probablyplug my heart into because we
certainly are passionate.
We don't want to stop doing whatwe're doing.
We've been doing it for almost,we're going into our fifth year
this year, and we're at over 200immersive events.
(28:06):
So we're looking for sponsors,we're looking for, obviously
monetary money makes the worldgo around.
So we're looking for thosebrands that are gonna wanna, or
even just your average person,we don't necessarily need, a
company.
But, you know, we've created areally unique, learning
environment that, I find is veryinspiring and I believe a lot of
other people do too.
nathan-c---they-the (28:28):
Absolutely! Five years of XR Women.
That is just outstanding! I haveto say that XR Women events,
both online and in person havebeen some of the most productive
places for me to build networkand community.
So, really a beloved org, forthe folks here at The Glow Up as
well.
Julie Smithson, it has been sucha pleasure to talk with you.
(28:49):
Thank you for making time, inyour very busy schedule.
I'm curious, do you have a callto action for folks listening?
How can people learn more orfollow up with you, if they're
interested or want to learn moreabout any of these, outstanding
and innovative projects?
julie-smithson_1_04-17-2025 (29:03):
You can find me on LinkedIn, Julie
Smithson.
I have a title of Top 100 Womenof the Future, which is a little
bit unique, but, I'm happy tocollaborate and, I've been
speaking lately at localcolleges about, digital identity
and VR storytelling so I'mcertainly open to providing any
of that, expertise.
(29:24):
So finding me there, that'sprobably the easiest and the
fastest way.
The call to action, if anyone'slistening and they wanna become
part of, the Unlimited Awesomemission, you can sign up on our
website unlimitedawesome.com.
We are looking for mentorswhich, you know, once we do
launch the commitment's aboutone hour a month so it's not too
(29:45):
labor intensive, but you'll be apart of something that's gonna
be truly global and impactful.
And I guess the last plug I'lldo is join XR Women.
You can sign up at xrwomen.comand you can join up for the, you
know, sign up for the newsletterand stay in touch that way.
We've got our YouTube channelwhere all of our recordings are
there.
And then of course attend asession any Wednesday.
(30:06):
Learn from the community howthis technology's being built
and how it's being used.
nathan-c---they-them-_1_04-1 (30:11):
Oh my goodness! Julie Smithson,
it's such an inspiring story forme to, hear about the long term
vision that you're able to buildfor yourself, 6ix Ventures and
MetaVRse by really anchoring inyour reflection, your sense of
(30:32):
self, and those core values thatyou bring, to all these ventures
that you're working on.
As a founder, that reminder tobe grateful to do the work of
review and to also takeactionable steps with customers
whenever possible to build yourvision in a methodical, planful
(30:56):
way that allows space to growand change as the market and the
world around you changes.
Thank you so much for joining uson The Glow Up.
It's been such a treat!
julie-smithson_1_04-17-20 (31:05):
Well, thank you for having me.
It's been an honor to be here.
Hello and welcome to The Glow Up-
(00:02):
fabulous conversations withinnovative minds.
I'm Nathan C and today I amchatting with Julie Smithson,
CEO of MetaVRse and co-founderof 6ix Ventures.
Julie, it is so good to see youtoday.
Thanks for joining me.
julie-smithson_1_04-17-2 (00:18):
Thanks for having me and, helping glow
up your podcast.
I'm excited to be here.
My name is Julie Smithson and Iam the CEO of MetaVRse and
co-founder of 6ix Ventures.
6ix Ventures is our familycompany where we've been
building for, many years.
We decided to put, all of ourcompanies and the mission of
(00:39):
what we're doing under oneumbrella.
My mission is to inspire andeducate the next generation of
future leaders.
To think and act in a socially,economically, environmentally
sustainable way.
We're gonna do that with,emerging technologies.
That's the mantra of what we'rebuilding.
So under 6ix Ventures, we haveUnlimited Awesome, MetaVRse,
(01:00):
and, we're also working on asovereign data solution as well,
for the education system.
So that's the big story thereunder the 6ix Ventures umbrella.
nathan-c---they-them-_1_04-17 (01:10):
I love this idea of a family of
serial entrepreneurs,recognizing the numerous,
companies and intellectualproperties that you have all
sort of fitting together under atheme and, building, that
umbrella, that parent that cansupport them all.
(01:31):
Literally a family of, productsand services, for the family of
entrepreneurs.
Can you talk a little bit moreabout that journey to envision
and realize 6ix Ventures and, tostart this new vision for, that
core vision that you're leadingwith.
julie-smithson_1_04-17-2025_1 (01:44):
I think our journey started when
my kids were young and nine, 10years old.
My older daughter created herfirst company solving, an ugly
tan line problem, and she builtout, The Love Sandals.
that leave a heart-shaped tanline and sold over 3000 pairs of
shoes.
That was when she was, at agenine.
(02:05):
we realized that with the futureof technology and education
today.
the kids were not learning whatthey needed to in order to see
their potential and to learn thethings that they're not teaching
in schools today.
So that became our big missionwith Unlimited Awesome.
And that we needed to build outa curriculum that taught
(02:27):
perseverance and criticalproblem solving teamwork,
collaboration, social impactenvironmental sustainability, as
well as financial literacy, allthe things that they never
taught in school.
So we put a curriculum together,called The Unlimited Awesome
Program and Academy.
At the same time we werebuilding the MetaVRse and we
(02:49):
started MetaVRse in 2016, waybefore the metaverse trend,
happened.
Today we actually own a wordtrademark on the word MetaVRse.
But in the last, nine years, wehave built over 200 immersive
projects, to understand thetechnology with spatial
computing and how are peoplelearning and educating,
(03:10):
training, how do consumers andretailers play together in this
space Avatars are part of it, 3Dassets and interactions and that
sort of thing.
So that's what MetaVRse becamethis game engine and almost like
a research hub for us using andworking with our clients to
build and innovate brand newsolutions.
(03:33):
Taking all of that learning andlessons and the product from
MetaVRse.
We knew that it would lenditself to become the virtual
campus for Unlimited.
And that's where we are today,putting this educational
curriculum together with theMetaVRse engine, to provide, the
curriculum to support andinspire that next generation to
(03:56):
have the skill sets andknowledge of both, what they
need to know aboutentrepreneurship and innovation,
but also using the technologythat is within our ecosystem
today.
nathan-c---they-them-_1_04 (04:09):
Wow, I gotta take a moment to just,
absorb a little bit.
This is fantastic, right?
Like, every founder storyusually starts with that pain
point and to see this pain in,the future you want to create
for your children and, helpingthem, start on their
entrepreneurial journey.
(04:30):
now that problem becomes soclear and I think I wanna dive
into a little bit more aboutusing MetaVRse, understanding
that this vision was gonna be inan immersive space, was gonna
leverage cutting edge technologyand then using client work using
partnerships, using theseprojects with brands to really
(04:51):
test, understand and validate,how to use, what do people need,
how are people really working inthere so that you can take these
things to the next level.
Like one, great job, workingwith clients to pay for the R&D,
that you're looking to build inthe future.
Wow, what a great, data set.
(05:13):
200 projects is, I think Mr.
Beast's advice is, you know, youwanna do something new, try a
hundred times, and you're boundto learn something.
Can you talk a little bit aboutwhat you learned as you worked
through these 200 spatialprojects and how that's impacted
the vision that you have today?
julie-smithson_1_04 (05:30):
Absolutely! My whole who I am today lends
itself to the experience youhave when you build something
for the first time.
And, proud to say, I built allof these projects 200 plus with
my team, but also 12 worldfirsts.
to tie that To innovation is,where we built everything for
the first time and worked withour clients.
(05:51):
We learned so much when weimplemented, you know, training
systems for one of the biggestmedical companies in the world
and transforming all of theirtraining applications into
virtual labs.
And even putting gamificationbehind that, especially when we
were dealing with a consumerexperience that we did with Mars
(06:12):
Wrigley, and the"Juicyverse".
And then you start to add allthese technologies together, the
gamification in the interactivespace, obviously builds out a
faster retention model oflearning, as well as engagement,
but also introducing avatars andhow, a code of conduct needs to
(06:33):
be implemented into these spacesbecause it's a brand new place
to meet and connect and tointeract as well as you, you
know, you're dealing withproduct purchases and designs
and things like that.
So, a more spatial understandingand awareness about what this
technology can do that tiesitself into learning and that
(06:54):
retention and engagement on theother side for that user became
the magical recipe, that, lendsitself to education, to
training, to marketing andcollaboration.
And those were the core piecesthat we focused on from the
MetaVRse perspective to learnmore about as we saw the changes
(07:14):
that were needed in theeducation system that would lend
itself to the curriculum and howwe're gonna build this out.
nathan-c---they-them-_1_04-1 (07:20):
So I love that.
This theme of like how gamemechanics, engagement, creating
space for community are allthings that, a brand desperately
wants as well as a core, driverof successful, education
experiences is such a fantasticinsight and a great way to touch
(07:41):
so many aspects of innovation.
When you're balancing thisstrategic long-term vision for
transforming education, plus theshort-term demands of, running a
family of companies, how do you,plan for and measure, the impact
of the work that you're doing onthe road to this vision?
julie-smithson_1_04-17-20 (08:04):
Yeah, absolutely.
And seeing how the technologies,started to converge.
Right.
And you know, I'll use the termWeb3.
It's not quite the term that youuse when you're pitching
customers'cause they don't quiteunderstand that.
But it is the convergence of theimmersive spatial computing
space with AI and then withblockchain.
(08:27):
And we actually did a worldfirst with Mars Wrigley with the
"Juicyverse" and the Starburstcandy by building out the first
in the world IRL to URL, to IRLproject, that was consumer
facing that led the consumer toa product purchase.
Using gamification and AI andthe blockchain all within that
(08:51):
one experience gave me a hugesense of understanding of how
this technology is engaging andrewarding, as well as providing
the user with either knowledgeor, the satisfaction of
understanding or connecting witha brand and what they're trying
to get across in theirmessaging.
So, it was a huge learningexperience for me that these
(09:13):
elements just, they need to lendthemselves into education in
order to engage the nextgeneration who are already on
Fortnite and Roblox andexpecting this type of
ecosystem, moving into theirworld where they're rewarded.
for, the levels that theyachieve and, whether they
collaborate with somebody nextdoor or from across the world.
(09:36):
This technology lends itself toopening the cultural
understanding and buildingempathy and skills that we need
as we're moving into this fourthindustrial revolution of change,
of how digitization is gonnachange the way that we're
learning and we're teaching.
nathan-c---they-them-_1_04- (09:51):
The impact of any marketing
campaign, is almost alwayssales.
Bravo, for having an IRL to URLto IRL, right?
That's a pretty complicated,tech, based workflow to be
driving actual sales, withimmersive and, Web3, products
(10:13):
is, stellar.
I love that you very casuallyalso were measuring the impact
of your work in world firsts.
Just the subtle, like first tomarket, right?
But that you very quickly areturning those into like, we
needed to know that so we coulddo this for this vision with
education.
There's something that youmentioned avatars like two or
(10:34):
three times.
In the immersive space as you orI, I think it would be really
interesting to hear what did youdiscover about avatars and that
personalized, nature, that is soimportant to this model for
global learning?
julie-smithson_1_04-17-20 (10:49):
Yeah, avatars really open up the
conversation of digital identityand for years, and I'll give an
example, I didn't just learnabout avatars through MetaVRse,
but also with XR Women.
And, another title I hold to myname is that I'm co-founder of
XR Women.
We're the largest group of womenworking in immersive and spatial
computing in the world.
(11:09):
We cover over 60 countries ofrepresentation and every week we
meet immersive as avatarslearning from each other.
And it's a truly proud part ofmy life that I am a part of this
community.
Anybody listening who wants tojoin, we meet every Wednesday
immersed in the space.
When I say immersed, it's notjust going into Google.
(11:30):
It's not just going into Teams.
It's representing yourself as anavatar and going into these
immersive virtual worlds wherepeople meet and collaborate.
But we also meet and learn, witha full presentation.
Avatars are kind of crazylooking still.
They're very uncanny.
They don't quite look like us,even when they try to look like
(11:51):
us.
But they do represent your voicein these spaces.
And when you start to engagewith other people and
collaborate, you have anidentity as an avatar in that
space.
And I think there's a lot oflearning to be done around
digital identity.
And the human agency part aboutthat.
(12:12):
As humans, we've always goneinto these platforms, with our
email.
And checking, you know, not justour email checking, but we're
logging in with an email.
And that email, depending onyour domain, of your email, is
who owns your data and who ownsyou as you're going through your
work.
As you're engaging with people,as you're posting things, as
(12:34):
you're creating files, you'resaving files.
It's all tied to your email.
And as we start to take the stepinto our technology, I always
say we're about to take a stepinto the z axis and step into
our technology as an avatar.
We have our identity that moveswith us and is with us wherever
we go.
(12:54):
And as humans, we need to takeownership of our own identity.
Pay closer attention, to whatwe're engaging in, what we're
learning and what we'retransacting at that time.
You know, we haven't even talkedabout buying things in the
metaverse but that's starting tohappen.
If I wanna buy a pair of digitalshoes that go onto my avatar's
(13:16):
feet, but also buy those samepair of shoes that come to my
door.
I'm using my profile, myidentity to make that purchase
and understanding theconnectivity of the email right
to that transaction.
Or say you and I, Nathan go intoa space and we have a meeting
and we decide on some reallyimportant things that we're
(13:39):
working on, you know, that's allconfirmed and decided by that,
that identity that's linked toyour email.
And I think that as we'reengaging in these spatial
computing experiences, more andmore, people will have to
really, connect to who they arein the space, because we're
gonna start to add a wallet tocollect the badges, to, collect
(14:02):
a coupon after we've gonethrough that game or we've
learned something.
So, there's this whole learningcurve that I think humanity is
going to face in a way that, youknow, we're all used to just
saying,"Oh, just use thisemail." But that email is
really, really linked to who youare as a person and the actions
(14:23):
that you have in these metaverselocations, whether it's my world
or any of the other worlds thatare out there.
So, there's this huge educationlesson that is around this and
digital identity is at the core.
Actually human identity is atthe core!
nathan-c---they-them-_1_04-17 (14:38):
I thought we were gonna get deep
into right, the personalizedconnection.
A lot of the common aspects, ofan avatar, which you did touch
on and I love.
Avatars are our digitalidentity.
And that identity and that sortof record of that identity, the
(14:59):
trust of that identity, theagency of that identity, either
digital or physical or hybrid,is very important.
Started to ring very clear andas you were talking about, hey,
you know, everything's connectedto your Gmail address and like,
how do you feel about that beingthe source of truth for you?
(15:23):
You know, I was listening tonews podcasts this morning
talking about how like UScitizens are having their
devices, you know, searched and,scraped electronically as
they're entering, the country.
Because our government the USgovernment has decided that
that's an okay thing to do.
The lawyer who was representingsomebody, you know, a number of
(15:47):
clients with human rights caseswas talking about how his entire
work life is on that phone.
And, you know, the danger or therisk that handing it over to the
feds could potentially mean forhim and his clients.
So the risk that I'm hearingabout identity, about putting
everything in one place aboutsort of being lax about how you
(16:08):
understand your digitalfootprint and your digital tech
stack is a real danger that weare experiencing today.
Makes me wanna ask the question.
Can you talk more about thissovereign data center and how
that fits into this vision foronline identity learning and
some of these next commerce,stages as well?
julie-smithson_1_04-17-20 (16:29):
Yeah, absolutely.
I think, the conversation ofdata, we've been talking about
it for a while, but theconversation is definitely
heightening.
Marketing companies are startingto take your data and repurpose
it and reuse it or sell it andalso the conversation about how,
where are we gonna store allthis data and where is it stored
and who owns me?
(16:50):
When you really dig deep intothose conversations, it can
really stress you out becauseyou don't know who really owns
you or where things are keptwhere that file storage is
linked to.
I think one of the biggestlessons I had was just, having
my identity taken away for twoweeks last year was the biggest
eyeopener for me inunderstanding that whole premise
(17:12):
of who owns me and how muchcontrol I have.
But also that email is also whatelse it was connected to, you
know, whether it was my bankaccounts or just, you know, a
school login for the kids.
You know, all of a sudden justunderstanding this whole
identity and how you're linkedto things is truly an eye-opener
(17:34):
and I encourage everybody toreally go through that inventory
process, of learning your ownpersonal tech stack.
When it comes to data, you know,we've nonchalantly clicked"I
agree" at the bottom of all ofthe things that we've signed up
for, whether it be a new phoneplan or you're signing up for a
subscription of one tool oranother.
(17:55):
But now it comes down to, youknow, where is that data being
stored?
And with Unlimited Awesome wesaw this writing on the wall of
the big tech companies,obviously owning everything that
we do, we say, we post, weshare, whether it's Facebook
Messenger or on X and yourmessaging there and Instagram.
(18:16):
All of these different socialplatforms have really taken over
and owned us in ways that makeit very difficult for us to
leave.
I for one, have my entire kids'digital profiles on Facebook and
for me, I don't wanna lose thatplatform.
So the approach that we'retaking with Unlimited Awesome is
that we want to build our ownsovereign data center.
(18:39):
So the ecosystem that we plan tobuild with Unlimited Awesome
through the MetaVRse Engine, theMetaVRse Engine being an open
source tool as well, that is notowned by any of the big tech
companies and could,intentionally be an open source
tool for many.
But in the Unlimited Awesomecurriculum, the plan is, to have
(19:01):
the data from the students beinghosted, by our own sovereign
data center.
We're talking brick and mortarhere in Ontario, Canada is where
our first one will beimplemented, and then we'll work
on it throughout the world.
But we're actually looking at aclean solution and one where
we'll take the energies and putthem back into other solutions
so that we're essentiallybuilding a carbon free, data
(19:23):
solution.
And that is what we need mostwhen it comes to the Earth's
sustainability.
nathan-c---they-them-_1_04 (19:29):
It's so key.
Honestly, if I were to boil downmy entire experience working
with, enterprise companiesaround innovative technologies,
I would say the biggest blockerby volume was"Where is my data?"
And I need control of my data inways that you tiny company
(19:52):
aren't thinking about.
So, I think almost anybody, thatyou would engage in the future,
is gonna want this.
And it's very interesting howtrust, transparency, and
control, all come together tokind of deliver that safe
digital, identity andexperience.
(20:13):
Julie, we are getting to the funpart now! We've talked about the
vision.
The show is called The Glow Up,which is a notable
transformation, rebirth, aleveling up of sorts.
So I'm very curious, what's theglow up you're hoping to make
with 6ix Ventures and MetaVRse,in the next say, six months?
julie-smithson_1_04-17-20 (20:33):
Yeah, so, our big plan is to launch a
beta of the Unlimited Awesome,program and, to kickstart the
first round of students thatwould be, engaged into the
curriculum itself.
One of the things that I'vepersonally been doing is going
through the curriculum myselfand the first element or Castle
of Success is aboutperseverance.
(20:56):
And I think this is somethingthat, as a takeaway for anybody
who's listening to The Glow Upis to glow yourself up with your
own perseverance.
One of the things that.
I do on a daily basis is agratitude journal, and it seems
like it's very minor, but itcertainly sets your mind up for
every day and putting your mindand your heart in the best way
(21:17):
to move forward through thistime of exponential growth.
And And I'm not just talkingabout the gratitude journal.
Where I personally, you know, Iwrite down three things that I'm
grateful for and three thingsthat I'd like to have happen
throughout the day.
And then I do an affirmation ofmyself and then at the end of
the day, just checking in and,you know, did I reach my goals?
That's just the entrepreneurshipside, the technology side, the
(21:40):
AI side, all of these new tools,the innovation, the speed at
which things are happening,that's another pace as well.
So we're seriously going throughthe stage of exponential growth,
that if we don't have the rightmindset and the health, the
wellness about ourselves to beable to cope, how are we
supposed to make those criticaldecisions and really start to
(22:02):
dig into innovation and problemsolve?
So that's why we say that withUnlimited Awesome.
the perseverance part, you know,doing the gratitude journal,
getting exercise, eating right,having that physical exercise,
being able to deep breathethrough the stressful times to
pace yourself out, but also to.
Have a side of"humanics" aboutyou.
(22:23):
And this is a term that I liketo bring up.
It's one that I learned, youknow, five, six years ago from
Joseph Aoun's book called"Robot-Proof." And"humanics" to me is
the fact that I know you, Nathanas a human on the other side of
this connection, and I'm gonnatreat you with respect and, you
know, honor our friendship andconnection.
(22:44):
But I also understand that we'vegot a platform here that's
recording us, and I understandthat you're gonna take this data
and you're gonna share it outwith everybody.
So I understand this trifecta,that is taking place.
You know, we all need to leadinto this state of"humanics" and
have cultural empathy aboutwhere everybody's coming from.
I always say everybody has theirown story.
(23:05):
Everybody has their own journey.
There's so many things happeningin the world that you just don't
even know what's happening onthe other side with that other
person.
Again, grounding yourself withperseverance and putting
yourself in the right mindset ofwellness to be able to
communicate and have healthyconversations.
Being able to think throughinnovation and creative problem
solve, it all stems from havinga healthy mind state.
(23:29):
That's kind of the biggesttakeaway I think for this Glow
Up session, that I could sharewith everybody.
So, yeah, be mindful, be presentwith yourself and, treat others
with the same respect.
nathan-c---they-them-_1_04-1 (23:39):
Oh my goodness.
This idea that shaping the mindsof future business leaders and,
digitally, adept humans, that weneed to start by giving
ourselves a glow up, making surethat we connect with our
humanity and, that as foundersand entrepreneurs, we stay
(24:05):
connected.
to our wins and our balance, ourgoals.
That humanity is the thing thatwill help us, persevere, is such
a lovely offer.
To start sharing thiscurriculum, to start, building
and seeing Unlimited Awesome inthe world, like what a fantastic
(24:27):
way, to start to introduce that!Heck yes! With big goals, also
sometimes means long horizons.
So how do you, you kind ofalluded to it, in this daily
practice of really, taking itday by day, but how will you
know in the future, that you'vemade it, that, your vision for,
(24:49):
6ix Ventures and UnlimitedAwesome and MetaVRse, that
you've achieved that, how willyou know?
julie-smithson_1_04-17-20 (24:54):
Well, I think that you need to
celebrate every day.
So I would say that I've alreadykind of made it in my own way so
far, even though UnlimitedAwesome is not fully launched.
I've celebrated my own, I'vemade it to today, right?
I think my journey, just likeeverybody else has a journey,
but mine has been one of growthin my confidence, especially
(25:16):
over the last year just due toentrepreneurial events that have
taken place, as for UnlimitedAwesome, the fact is, is that we
we're seeing a lot of peoplehave conversations about
education already.
Everybody is top of mind rightnow for education and, and
seeing that people, and knowingpeople are are, are welcoming
(25:42):
the program that we've beenbuilding and putting together,
It, it's, it's heartwarmingbecause we have a solution.
We have a solution for a neweducation system.
We know how we need to deployit.
The next generation of studentsare already in Fortnite and
Roblox.
They're already expecting aninteractive gamified life.
You know, coming out of thatgame and, you know, schools
(26:06):
competing with Fortnite, youknow, you just, you need to be
of equal, stature when it comesto engaging with students.
And so building this out, in thenext six months we're raising
money for, a bigger fund for theUnlimited Awesome Academy.
Seeing it going live, that willbe a moment for me, right?
(26:27):
Seeing students being engagedwith it.
But we're already seeing thetraction of investors and
community starting to adopt whatwe're doing because there is no
solution out there that's likewhat we've thought of and we're
curating, some of the smartestmentors we've got.
We're aiming for a thousand thisyear, but we've got well over a
(26:47):
hundred, of amazing, peoplecommitted to mentoring this new
curriculum and being a part ofthis solution that will set up
the next generation to discovertheir fullest human potential.
nathan-c---they-them-_ (26:59):
Amazing! A thousand new mentors! Julie,
every episode of The Glow Upmakes time and space to, give a
shout out or a spotlight to acommunity group that's doing
great work.
Is there a nonprofit or aninnovative project or a group
that you think could use alittle extra attention?
julie-smithson_1_04-17-2025_1 (27:20):
I would say XR Women.
We're a nonprofit, doingincredible work.
We have surrounded ourselveswith a global community of
knowledge and passion andinnovation and curiosity.
We've got two student chapters,one with the Ringling, College
of Art and Design and SCAD whichis the Savannah College of Art
and Design.
The future for XR Women isreally this community hub of
(27:43):
learning and it's learning aboutimmersive tech and how we can
use it for humanity's bestapplications.
That is where I would probablyplug my heart into because we
certainly are passionate.
We don't want to stop doing whatwe're doing.
We've been doing it for almost,we're going into our fifth year
this year, and we're at over 200immersive events.
(28:06):
So we're looking for sponsors,we're looking for, obviously
monetary money makes the worldgo around.
So we're looking for thosebrands that are gonna wanna, or
even just your average person,we don't necessarily need, a
company.
But, you know, we've created areally unique, learning
environment that, I find is veryinspiring and I believe a lot of
other people do too.
nathan-c---they-the (28:28):
Absolutely! Five years of XR Women.
That is just outstanding! I haveto say that XR Women events,
both online and in person havebeen some of the most productive
places for me to build networkand community.
So, really a beloved org, forthe folks here at The Glow Up as
well.
Julie Smithson, it has been sucha pleasure to talk with you.
(28:49):
Thank you for making time, inyour very busy schedule.
I'm curious, do you have a callto action for folks listening?
How can people learn more orfollow up with you, if they're
interested or want to learn moreabout any of these, outstanding
and innovative projects?
julie-smithson_1_04-17-2025 (29:03):
You can find me on LinkedIn, Julie
Smithson.
I have a title of Top 100 Womenof the Future, which is a little
bit unique, but, I'm happy tocollaborate and, I've been
speaking lately at localcolleges about, digital identity
and VR storytelling so I'mcertainly open to providing any
of that, expertise.
(29:24):
So finding me there, that'sprobably the easiest and the
fastest way.
The call to action, if anyone'slistening and they wanna become
part of, the Unlimited Awesomemission, you can sign up on our
website unlimitedawesome.com.
We are looking for mentorswhich, you know, once we do
launch the commitment's aboutone hour a month so it's not too
(29:45):
labor intensive, but you'll be apart of something that's gonna
be truly global and impactful.
And I guess the last plug I'lldo is join XR Women.
You can sign up at xrwomen.comand you can join up for the, you
know, sign up for the newsletterand stay in touch that way.
We've got our YouTube channelwhere all of our recordings are
there.
And then of course attend asession any Wednesday.
(30:06):
Learn from the community howthis technology's being built
and how it's being used.
nathan-c---they-them-_1_04-1 (30:11):
Oh my goodness! Julie Smithson,
it's such an inspiring story forme to, hear about the long term
vision that you're able to buildfor yourself, 6ix Ventures and
MetaVRse by really anchoring inyour reflection, your sense of
(30:32):
self, and those core values thatyou bring, to all these ventures
that you're working on.
As a founder, that reminder tobe grateful to do the work of
review and to also takeactionable steps with customers
whenever possible to build yourvision in a methodical, planful
(30:56):
way that allows space to growand change as the market and the
world around you changes.
Thank you so much for joining uson The Glow Up.
It's been such a treat!
julie-smithson_1_04-17-20 (31:05):
Well, thank you for having me.
It's been an honor to be here.
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