Accenture Song has hired James Temple as its new global metaverse lead.

Temple, who previously served as chief design officer for augmented reality company Magic Leap, will also co-lead Accenture Song’s Metaverse Continuum Business Group (MCBG), its main metaverse-focused unit, alongside the practice’s other co-lead, David Treat.

MCBG launched in March 2022, spearheaded by Accenture Song’s CEO David Droga and Chief Technology Officer Paul Daugherty. It has since helped launch a metaverse space for the World Economic Forum called the Global Collaboration Village, marking the forum’s first foray into the virtual world.

“The Village will use the frontier capabilities of the metaverse to find solutions for addressing the big issues of our time in a more open, inclusive and sustained way,” Klaus Schwab, founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum said in a statement when the metaverse launched in January.

Accenture also built a metaverse space for Tuvalu, an island country in the South Pacific that is facing extinction due to climate change, so that it can virtually preserve its culture and history.

Temple succeeds Mark Curtis, who will be taking on a larger role leading Accenture Song’s global sustainability studio, according to a statement by the company. Curtis had previously been leading both units.

“James is a bold, fierce and wildly innovative leader,”  Droga said in a statement. “He’s been at the forefront of some incredibly groundbreaking tech advancements through his leadership at Magic Leap.”

Prior to his time at Magic Leap, Temple served as chief creative officer of R/GA London before departing in 2018.

This new hire is proof that Accenture continues to be bullish in the metaverse space, which has seen increased interest from brands over the past couple of years. A recent survey by Accenture found that consumer interest in the metaverse is expected to fuel $1 trillion in overall industry revenue by end of 2025.