Upland has added NFT cars and Rio Janeiro and Las Vegas as cities where users can purchase virtual real estate. This move was announced during its annual Genesis week conference last week in Las Vegas, which also reported a surge in registered users to 2.5 million.

Upland was founded in 2018 in Silicon Valley by serial entrepreneurs Idan Zuckerman, Mani Honigstein, and Dirk Lueth. It is a real-world metaverse sustained by players through the market forces and stands on three pillars – Play, Earn and Connect. The company has evolved within a few years to become a top metaverse destination for players. No wonder from May 2021 to last month, the number of minted properties exceeded 300%, while registered users were about 2.5 million.

During the conference, the company also launched the first car of its metaverse – Metaverse Motors (MV Motors). The NFTs will be another avenue for players to trade, collect and manufacture automobiles. These cars will bring new possibilities to an already exciting list of services, such as cargo transportation, car manufacturing, operating showrooms, and providing rideshare.

In addition, players will also be able to partake in car racing competitions through open cities in the metaverse. Apart from cars, Upland added two new cities to a team of 18 cities with more than 230,000 virtual landlords. Las Vegas is now open for players to trade virtual properties based on real-world addresses. In addition, Rio de Janeiro will be the first international city to feature in its metaverse.

Upland is interested in making opportunities available for developers. It hosted its inaugural Hackathon during Genesis week, which will serve as an opportunity for developers to leverage Upland’s tools to create Web3 experiences. It also awarded a $50,000 grant to the most creative project during the Hackathon. The company hopes to create a future where Uplanders will not only trade and craft digital assets but also build new metaverse experiences.