Founder and CEO, Xsolla (Xsolla Inc.)
🎥 Block Tides' exclusive interview with Shurick Agapitov, the founder of Xsolla ✨
Watch Block Tides' exclusive interview with Shurick Agapitov, the founder of the multibillion-dollar enterprise @Xsolla, the world's ...
About Shurick Agapitov
Shurick Agapitov, founder and CEO of Xsolla, released a book titled *Once Upon Tomorrow: Harnessing the New Opportunities the Metaverse Creates* in March 2024. In interviews promoting the book, Agapitov described it as presenting his vision for a "new internet" that some people call the metaverse, which he characterized as a 3D, video game-like iteration of the internet. He stated that he wrote the book to inspire the next generation of internet entrepreneurs and to encourage readers to find opportunities for themselves in what he called the "3D internet." Agapitov also discussed his earlier venture, X.LA, which he described as a platform intended to facilitate revenue distribution for intellectual property creators and owners, allowing contributors to receive a percentage of sales rather than a one-time payment. In various interviews from 2022 to 2024, Agapitov elaborated on his definition of the metaverse, stating that it is not necessarily about virtual reality or specific platforms like Roblox or Fortnite, but rather a new internet built with video game technologies. He expressed the view that the metaverse will consist of "meta sites" — 3D spaces developed by video game developers for brands and intellectual properties. Agapitov also commented on the role of large companies, saying he would not be surprised if Facebook (Meta) fails within four to eight years, and noted that the inability to create a currency that governments allow for transactions is a "deal breaker." He emphasized that he believes people in the future will work more for protocols and themselves than for corporations.
Transcript (15 segments)
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Myrtle Ramos0:09
This is Myrtle Ramos, founder of block Titan and official influencer of Coin Market Cap. Today we have XLA for an insight on what they do. I'm excited to speak to Shurick Agapitov, founder of multi-billion dollar enterprise Xsolla, the world's leading fintech business and micro transaction engine for games. So guys, for developers and game enthusiasts in Web3, here is Shurick. In early 2022, he founded XLA with a mission to ensure the promise and potential of Web3 is within everyone's reach. So how are you today? We have exciting questions for you. So what's your transition from Xsolla? We heard about Xsolla doing a great job. From Xsolla to XLA, what did you decide to do?
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Shurick Agapitov1:25
Xsolla is quite successful by itself. I founded it almost 20 years ago when I was 21. It's well known as a video game commerce platform, like Shopify for video games. If you pay for Roblox, Fortnite, Twitch, or Ubisoft, you might see Xsolla on your credit card statement. The business is doing really well. COVID boosted us; I almost doubled the business as people played more games. But I'm an entrepreneur and I can't miss the Web3 metaverse opportunity. I truly believe it's the next version of the internet. I appointed a CEO I trust, who had been with the company for over 10 years, and started this new company, XLA.
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Myrtle Ramos2:50
Oh, that's the reason why. It's a great inspiration. In the Philippines, we've been gamers since 2000, playing Counter Strike, and Roblox is booming with kids. So the second question: can you talk about XLA in general? What's the mission?
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Shurick Agapitov3:18
I grew up very poor and moved to the United States. In the US, people talk about equal access to opportunity. For me, the internet was the equalizer. I learned to code and write agreements, and I started a business from nothing with no outside capital. My mission with XLA is to help others find opportunity in the new internet. I want to create a revenue share protocol, a royalty. Many people have a salary or tokens and equity. I want to create a third type of income: a royalty. If you create something—video, content, text, story, picture, music, software—you can be compensated with a percent of sales from whatever you create. For someone working at a game studio, they get a salary. I want to add the opportunity for people to create for an indie project during the weekend, and if the project succeeds, they get 5% or 10% of sales. It's riskier but offers upside. This is how people can earn money in the new internet, the metaverse.
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Myrtle Ramos6:19
That's a really inspiring mission. For newbies, in Web2 we don't own the network, but in Web3, in the metaverse, everyone has a share. The users own the network. In Web2, only big companies earn. Thank you for sharing. Do you want to add to that?
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Shurick Agapitov7:01
Many protocols reward the community with token drops, and gamers can own digital items. XLA is different: we offer a piece of the revenues, not ownership. If you contribute to game development or promotion, you get a revenue share in perpetuity. That's radically different from tokens, which create anxiety about when to sell. XLA's model is still risky—you might contribute to something that fails. But if it succeeds, you get that share. For businesses, it's risk-free because we don't pay upfront; we pay for performance, aligning interests.
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Myrtle Ramos8:39
So when you talk about creators, is it just limited to game developers?
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Shurick Agapitov8:45
I often mention game developers because I come from the video game industry. The metaverse is a new internet built with game technologies. Every website will have a 3D version. The metaverse needs a blockchain backend and should be decentralized, not owned by a few corporations. It will be created by many contributors, like in movies. People come together to build experiences, and each time that experience earns money, they get a revenue share. It's not only for game developers: writers, technical artists, voice actors, musicians, and promoters all contribute and earn. So it's open to everyone.
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Myrtle Ramos11:19
So everyone—game producers, content creators, technical producers—can contribute in the world of XLA. I'm curious about the protocol you have. Can you tell us more about it?
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Shurick Agapitov11:36
We've spent two years whiteboarding this idea. We're looking for technical partners from the Web3 community. We're not Web3 native, but we have video game and Hollywood connections. We don't want to build our own L1 or marketplace; we'll use existing infrastructure. Anyone interested can email XLA. On x.la, you can subscribe to the newsletter for updates on opportunities for writers, musicians, and artists. If you want to learn game development, go to 80.ov or email us about school invitations. We need to produce talent because this transformation is massive—every website will have a 3D version.
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Myrtle Ramos13:50
That's exciting, especially in the Philippines where communities need help with infrastructure and learning. So guys, subscribe to XLA's newsletter and visit their website. The best question: what makes your metaverse exciting? Can you tell us more about XLA's metaverse?
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Shurick Agapitov14:22
It's not XLA's metaverse; it's people's metaverse. XLA is an economical alignment to create a new internet that is completely decentralized, not owned by one company or a few. It won't be developed by one studio. In the future, people will work for protocols and themselves, not for corporations.
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Myrtle Ramos15:05
All right, the last question: what else is happening in XLA? Any events?
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Shurick Agapitov15:14
I can't announce our plans yet. Stay tuned, subscribe to XLA. You can get your NFT drop on x.la. In the future, we'll have photorealistic experiences in the browser with Unreal Engine 5 and legendary IP. Please hear from us over the next year. Thank you.
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Myrtle Ramos15:55
Thank you for listening. Don't forget to like, share, and subscribe. Follow XLA's socials and subscribe to their newsletter. This is Myrtle Ramos, founder of block Titan and influencer of Coin Market Cap. See you in the next video.