Advertising group Publicis introduced the world to Leon, their new metaverse official, during this year’s VivaTech conference which is being held in Paris.
Leon is not your run-of-the-mill employee who comes in to the office everyday. He’s a little more… distant. Leon is a virtual avatar created by international media agency, Publicis Conseil, to help clients better understand, navigate and create their own strategies based on Web3 integrations.
“I am not humble. I am a lion and I work in the advertising industry,” Leon said confidently in his introductory statements towards the audience. He added that he thought he knew all there is to know about the metaverse and Web3 until “one night I woke up and told to myself the best way to learn is to do stuff”.
The creation of Leon is clear evidence of Publicis’ intentions to invest into the blockchain and the rapidly developing world of Web3, with the company pointing out they have “developed and driven” these efforts over the last year.
Publicis CEO Arthur Sadoun released a statement regarding Leon’s appointment: “The metaverse isn’t a destination, it’s a real-time learning moment for all. It requires interrogation, education and experimentation. We are committed to being on that journey with our clients, to help them understand what it means for their business and to bring them the existing Web3 capabilities in the Groupe across data, media and technology. Leon embodies that as an avatar and will help our clients navigate this new channel and progress every step of the way.”
Marco Venturelli, Publicis France’s chief creative officer and the person who brought Leon to life, added: “The metaverse is an endless, unknown territory to explore with creativity. To truly innovate we have to experiment and learn as we go. Leon’s mission is to motivate all of us to be brave and progressive; because the earlier we move, the further we can go.”
