In the summer of 2025, a simple website called WPlace.live captured the collective attention of the internet. With over 10.6 million users painting pixels on a collaborative world map, it became one of the year's most significant digital phenomena. But who were the visionaries behind this pixelated planet?
The story of WPlace begins in Brazil with Murilo Matsubara, a developer who spent three months single-handedly creating what would become a global sensation. Launched on July 21, 2025, his concept was deceptively simple: a collaborative pixel art canvas layered over a real-world map where users could place one pixel every 30 seconds.
What started as Matsubara's personal project quickly evolved into something much larger. As WPlace experienced unprecedented growth, it transitioned from a solo endeavor into a collaborative effort requiring a full team to manage the overwhelming demand.
Creator & Lead Developer
The original architect who built WPlace over three months, handling the technical foundation and core concept.
Co-founder & Spokesperson
Emerged as a key figure during the scaling phase, addressing media and managing public communications.
Co-founder
Listed as a founder, contributing to the operational and business aspects of the expanding platform.
WPlace didn't emerge in a vacuum. It was explicitly inspired by Reddit's groundbreaking 2017 experiment, r/place, created by Josh Wardle (who later created Wordle). However, Matsubara and his team introduced revolutionary changes that transformed the concept entirely.
The creators' success came with unprecedented challenges. The rapid growth from a personal project to serving millions of users created technical and social pressures that would test any team.
The platform struggled under the weight of millions of concurrent users, leading to:
Managing a community of 10.6 million users proved daunting:
The "droplets" economy sparked significant debate:
Despite the challenges, the creators had built something extraordinary. WPlace became more than a game—it evolved into a living document of internet culture in 2025, featuring everything from fandom art to political protests, collaborative neighborhoods to digital nationalism.
The creators of WPlace achieved something remarkable: they built a digital space that captured the zeitgeist of 2025. From Matsubara's initial three-month development sprint to the expanded team managing millions of users, their journey reflects the modern internet's capacity for both explosive growth and community creation.
WPlace stands as a testament to the power of simple ideas executed with vision. Murilo Matsubara, Enzo Watanabe, and Lucas Teruo Yamashita didn't just create a website—they built a digital world where millions could collaborate, compete, and create together.
Their story reminds us that in the age of the internet, three developers with a compelling vision can create a global phenomenon that captures the imagination of millions and becomes a living document of human creativity and collaboration.