Hongzi Mao is a Co-founder and CTO of Hologram Labs, the company behind the blockchain-based AI and 3D entertainment social network, Holoworld AI. ^[1][2]

Education

Hongzi Mao attended the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology from 2011 to 2015 where he earned a Bachelor of Science (BS) degree in Mathematics and Computer Science (Major) and Physics (Minor). From 2015 to 2020, he attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) for a PhD in Computer Science. ^[1]

Career

Hongzi Mao started his career as a Researcher at Microsoft in 2016 and at Facebook in 2018. At Facebook, he developed a reinforcement learning-based bitrate adaptation system in the production video streaming platform to improve video quality for worldwide users. He also worked in Research at DeepMind (2020) and at Clockwork Systems (2021) where he synchronized thousands of computers in nanosecond accuracy purely in software. He was responsible for building new distributed systems and other software primitives that leverage reliably synchronized clocks. ^[3]

Hologram Labs

In 2022, Hongzi Mao co-founded Hologram Labs alongside Tong Pow and he serves as the CTO of the company. Hologram Labs is the company that developed Holoworld AI. Hologram Labs stands at the forefront of next-generation Artificial Intelligence (AI) social technology providers, collaborating with brands, online communities, and content creators to create distinct digital identities in the form of digital avatars. The company raised $6.5 million 7 months before its launch. ^[2][5]

Launched in January 2024, Holoworld AI is a decentralized AI character marketplace and social platform where users can create intelligent AI bots with a few clicks. Holoworld AI integrates entertainment, education, and the creator economy within a social platform. It offers a range of features including the creation of 3D AI characters, AI chat companionship, and a marketplace for trading AI agents, wearables, and other in-world assets. ^[2][4]

Holoworld is backed by well-known investors and institutions such as Polychain, Linkin Park’s Mike Shinoda, the Founder of BRC20 Domo, the Co-Founder of BitMEX Arthur Hayes, a VP of Engineering at OpenAI, Kalos, founder of Parallel NFT; Richard Ma, founder of Quantstamp; and Naveen Jain, founder of Yat Labs. ^[4][5] CTO Hongzi Mao (left); CEO Tong Pow (right)