It¡¯s only 5 p.m. on a Saturday in Los Angeles, but the Zone ¡ª a 16-room virtual club on the videoconferencing app Zoom ¡ª is already in full swing.
¡°You¡¯re late!¡± admonishes a bouncer with a glowing Celtic symbol on her forehead, peering through a pixelated window at a gaggle of new guests tuning in from their homes, making sure they are properly outfitted, both with drinks and in looks. She clicks them into different ¡°dance floor¡± chat rooms, where revelers in colorful costumes shimmy to a livestreamed DJ set while two fluffy puppets maneuvered by an invisible hand waltz in each other¡¯s arms. In an additional networked room, a man in a pink wig leads a spirited conversation about sustainable farming. At the end of the night, the party¡¯s host invites everyone to the ¡°hot tub¡± room ¡ª swimming attire required. Shirts are peeled off and snorkels pulled on as guests gamely play along.
¡°Someone has handed Zoom to us, and we¡¯re just playing around,¡± observes one guest, dressed in a Santa hat, who claims to be the son of a pig farmer turned crypto-investor. ¡°This is the cutting edge, and I¡¯m confident it will bloom into something else.¡±
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