P&G Trailblazer Leads P&G into the Metaverse

At the 2022 Consumer Electronics Show, P&G increased its virtual presence by deepening the breadth of its PGLifeLab. As companies look for innovative ways to engage their consumers in the metaverse, we’re looking to lifelong creative leaders like Ioana Matei to customize P&G’s approach.

“I’ve been passionate about technology for as long as I can remember,” said Matei, the architect and creator behind P&G’s immersive virtual experience, PGLifeLab.

For Matei, it started when she was a little girl sitting in her family’s living room gaming on an Atari system. If you’re unfamiliar with Atari, it’s a company that pioneered the path to digital gaming beginning in the mid-1970s.

“I was playing every day and literally, the Atari almost caught fire because I played for like 10 hours and they needed to carry me out from in front of the T.V. to let it cool a bit.”

Matei is living out her childhood dream by creating immersive spaces like the PGLifeLab that debuted at CES for the first time in 2021.

“What’s truly exciting is being at the front of this new medium—it’s what T.V. was for radio. It’s a different way of engaging.”

PGLifeLab is a new way for P&G to tell its innovation and citizenship stories by showcasing new inventive products and initiatives that impact our consumers every day. Whether it’s gamifying the experience of using Gillette’s Exfoliating Bar razor or experiencing the BeautySPHERE and the company’s commitment to Responsible Beauty—the PGLifeLab brings it all to life.

“Technology moves very fast. You can’t really plan five years ahead and it’s a learn, fail, relearn exercise. It’s great that our leadership has leaned in,” Matei said.

Watch Ioana Matei at CES 2022 discussing the metaverse.

But her creative work doesn’t stop there. Outside of P&G, Matei is a professional filmmaker, she currently has two projects in the works about werewolves and zombies. She also co-founded a non-profit in Europe, Women in Immersive Technologies with the objective of lifting other women in the industry.

“We found ourselves at conferences seeing all male panels and we decided to have a network where we can help each other. We created a female directory of speakers, so no one can tell us that they can’t find a woman to put on stage,” Matei said.

Earlier this year, Matei was recognized as a Signal 2021 Trailblazer for her work. The Signal Trailblazers series features P&G, managers and executives around the globe who are innovating new ways to make business a force for growth.