Visa teams up with Ubisoft; AI dApps outperform DeFi, gaming
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Payment processor Visa (NASDAQ: V) has announced a partnership with video game publisher Ubisoft (NASDAQ: UBSFF), designed to blend digital payments and gaming for consumers.
Under the three-year deal, Visa and Ubisoft will offer gamers various functionalities to enhance users' gaming experience, including the prospect of mainstream gamified payments. A series of initiatives to improve consumer experiences, cutting across entertainment and digital commerce, are also in the pipeline.
The partnership follows the release of Ubisoft's new title, Just Dance, with both parties releasing a raft of marketing campaigns for the game. Currently, Visa and Ubisoft have released a promotional dance featuring Visa's brand ambassador, Portuguese footballer Kika Nazareth.
In its official statement, Visa also announced that its cardholders will enjoy exclusive access to in-game content for Just Dance. Furthermore, cardholders will enjoy the additional perks of game codes and Ubisoft+ subscriptions for established and budding gamers.
'Today marks the first step in our partnership with Visa to bring exclusive in-game content to cardholders, and we look forward to sharing more soon,' said Chris Early, senior vice president of Strategic Partnerships at Ubisoft.
However, the collaboration appears to be Eurocentric, with benefits applicable only to the European Union and the United Kingdom card users. For now, it remains unclear if Visa and Ubisoft will extend the scope of the joint offerings to other regions.
'I am delighted that Visa will be bringing its expertise to the gaming world through our partnership with Ubisoft and offering exclusive opportunities to our cardholders and beyond,' said Visa Europe CMO Kimberly Kadlec.
Experts say the partnership may lead to the rise of Visa-based loyalty programs for Ubisoft game titles. Furthermore, Ubisoft's foray into blockchain-based gaming and Visa's Web3 capabilities may support digital asset in-game transactions.
Blockchain gaming has surged to new highs, racking up 7.4 million new wallets in 2024 alone. While new developers are powering the trend, established gaming companies like Ubisoft are increasing their footprint in the space with a non-fungible token (NFT)-based game with Immutable.
Despite the growing metrics, a report notes that 80% of gamers have yet to play a blockchain-based game, creating room for seismic adoption figures. The three-year deal between Visa and Ubisoft provides potential upside for blockchain gaming adoption despite a dip in funding across the ecosystem.
AI dApps pose challenge to DeFi, gaming
The spike in AI dApp user wallets over the last month has far-reaching consequences for the dApp industry's rankings. Analysts at DappRadar say AI's meteoric rise is snatching a significant piece from the traditional dominance held by DeFi and gaming dApps.
'For the first time in several months, gaming and DeFi each hold 21% dominance, while AI has climbed to 16%, its highest yet,' said Sara Gherhelas, analyst at DappRadar. 'If this trend continues, AI could soon challenge the traditional dominance of DeFi and Gaming, signaling a new era in the dApp landscape.'
While AI dApps enjoyed a stellar performance between March and April, on-chain analytics reveal that social-based dApps racked up 3.6 million new users in the same period. On the flip side, DeFi and gaming dApps saw their user metrics tumble by 16% and 10%, respectively.
Gherhelas attempted to rationalize the jarring figures in the dApp ecosystem, describing April as a month of 'recalibration' for the industry.
The rise of AI dApps in recent months is not a flash in the pan but the effect of several underlying factors. The mainstream AI adoption trend and rising utility of AI dApps is powering interest across the board, with users noting a significant improvement in user experience.
On the other hand, previous bearish sentiments at the end of Q1 2025 saw investor interest in DeFi protocols fall to new lows, while others blame rug pulls and a slew of scalability issues for the decline.
AI and blockchain are opening new vistas for enterprises embracing emerging technologies. Previously, pioneers have pushed for their adoption in silos, but integrating them is powering new utilities across several verticals.
Enterprises are integrating these two technologies to verify AI-generated images and deepfakes. Others are turning to the combination to improve the scope of cybersecurity offerings, while utilities in the Internet of Things (IoT) technology have yielded early progress.
In order for artificial intelligence (AI) to work right within the law and thrive in the face of growing challenges, it needs to integrate an enterprise blockchain system that ensures data input quality and ownership—allowing it to keep data safe while also guaranteeing the immutability of data. Check out CoinGeek's coverage on this emerging tech to learn more why Enterprise blockchain will be the backbone of AI.
Watch: Focusing on gaming and unveiling HandCash's future plans
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