Sitting at the airport after an incredible few days at RDC, I've had the chance to connect with so many of you who follow me here on LinkedIn and on Twitter. Meeting you all in person and hearing about the paths you're taking has been genuinely inspiring - thank you for letting me be part of your story, even if just through a single conversation.
Let me share what's got me most excited from all the announcements...
The money numbers are absolutely crazy. The top 1,000 developers earned $980K each in the last 12 months - that's 2.9x growth since 2020. The top 100? $7 million each (2.8x increase). And the top 10 developers pulled in $38.5 million each, a 2.2x jump since 2020. When they announced the Developer Exchange rate is going up by 8.5%, that got the loudest cheer of the entire keynote.
Roblox paid out $1 billion in Dev Ex in the last year alone. This isn't just impressive - serious money can be made on this platform, and it's only going to get bigger.
Moments launched during the event - think TikTok but built into Roblox experiences. The reaction was mixed... The experience so far feels a bit rushed, which has me wondering if they can actually pull this off. This could be game-changing for discovery if they deliver it right. The API can be added to any experience, which means developers could showcase their best content directly in-game.
IP partnerships are finally getting real. More brands are joining the licensing manager, IP holders are starting to realize they're not the ones who should be creating experiences with their IP - it's the native developers who already know how to make it work on Roblox.
AI is going to change everything - not just for gaming, but for how we think about user-created content. The text-to-speech creation and 4D rendering tools that let you instantly play with what you've created? We're looking at a future where players don't just use content, they create it on the spot. I can already picture developers making challenges where users have to create assets to move forward. The auto-translate feature for talking across languages and those surprisingly lifelike NPCs (yes, they were a bit goofy, but the long-term plan is clear) are going to change how we see NPCs.
Some of the "boring" tech stuff was awesome - pushing updates without shutting down servers, A/B testing updates, the Studio makeover with place version history. SLIM tech is doing magic with mesh optimization, and server authority means competitive gaming is about to get a lot more fair. The better movement systems - side-stepping, crouching, sprinting, and those finger controls for realistic object grabbing - all super impressive!
I'll do a deep dive into the topics this week, but sitting here inspired by everyone at the airport... it's clear we're watching Roblox change from a kids' gaming platform into something much bigger then many ever imagined.
I've said this more than once in the past year of writing - Roblox is the future of gaming.
