Metaverse – Imagine a virtual world where billions of people live, work, shop, study, and interact with each other while physically residing in their own world, sitting comfortably on their sofas. In this world, the computer screens we currently use to connect to the global web of information have become gateways to a three-dimensional virtual world that is as vivid as real life. Our digital footprints or avatars can move freely from one experience to another, carrying our identity and money with us in this world. All of this is known as the metaverse.

The metaverse is a vision that many in the computer industry believe is the next evolution of the internet: a single, shared, immersive, persistent, three-dimensional virtual space where humans can experience life in ways that are impossible in the physical world.

Technologies such as Virtual Reality (VR) headsets and Augmented Reality (AR) glasses that provide access to this virtual world are rapidly developing. Other key components of the metaverse, such as adequate bandwidth or interoperability standards, may be years away or may never be practical. The concept of the metaverse is not new: the term “metaverse” was coined in 1992 by author Neal Stephenson in his science fiction novel “Snow Crash,” which described a future where millions of people use virtual avatars to participate in cyberspace. This concept became even more popular with Ernest Cline’s science fiction novel “Ready Player One,” where people wear VR headsets daily and enter a virtual world to bring their imaginations to life. In 2003, the company Linden Lab launched Second Life, considered one of the early real-life examples of the metaverse. Second Life is not a game but an artificial three-dimensional environment where users can do virtually anything. They can adopt new identities, find hobbies, run businesses, and make friends with people from distant geographies.

Second Life received tremendous acclaim after its release, with nearly a million users signing up. Harvard University held classes in it, rapper Jay-Z held a concert, and the music band Rolling Stone declared it the future of the net. However, the excitement for Second Life eventually waned, and the platform’s development slowed, but its cultural impact hinted at the possibility of the metaverse. In the years following the peak of Second Life, numerous technological advancements, mostly led by the gaming industry, have spurred discussions about the metaverse.

Why is the Metaverse Important?

The metaverse became a common term when Facebook rebranded itself as Meta in October 2021 and announced plans to invest at least $10 billion in this concept for the year. Besides Meta, tech companies like Google, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Qualcomm are also investing billions of dollars in this concept. Management consultancy McKinsey & Company predicts that the metaverse economy could reach $5 trillion by 2030. E-commerce is expected to be a dominant engine in this space, with gaming, entertainment, education, and marketing also becoming key sectors within the metaverse. Today, companies use this term to refer to a variety of better online environments, ranging from online video games like Fortnite to Microsoft’s Mesh and Meta’s Horizon Workrooms, virtual dressing rooms, and virtual operating rooms. Instead of a shared virtual space, the current version of the metaverse is taking the form of a multiverse. The combination of intense enthusiasm and profound uncertainty for the metaverse has also sparked some backlash. Industry watchers wonder whether the metaverse will be much different from our current digital experiences or whether people will be willing to spend significant time in the digital space navigating with a headset every day. However, other future experts argue that while these are the early days of the metaverse and fundamental technical barriers still exist, the metaverse will come and it will arrive with a bang. It is clear that the metaverse is one of the most anticipated technological evolutions of the coming decade.

How Does the Metaverse Work?

Since the metaverse is largely undeveloped, there is little consensus on how it will function. However, the metaverse can be described as a digital ecosystem built on various types of three-dimensional technology, real-time collaboration software, and blockchain-based decentralized financial tools. The degree of interoperability between virtual worlds, data portability, governance, and user interfaces will depend on how the metaverse emerges. Lauren Lubetsky of Bain & Company outlined three possible scenarios at the MIT Platform Strategy Summit in 2022:

• The metaverse may remain a domain of specific applications used by consumers for entertainment and gaming but will be less than a fully encompassing virtual reality.
• The metaverse could be controlled through large competitive ecosystems, such as Apple and Android metaworlds, but with limited interoperability.
• The metaverse could be a dynamic, open, and interoperable space, much like the internet, but in three dimensions.

How Can Access to the Metaverse Be Gained?

Two technologies considered critical for the development and growth of the metaverse are Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR):

• Virtual Reality (VR): Virtual reality is an artificial three-dimensional environment that enables users to interact with the surrounding virtual environment as if it were real, feeling the virtual environment as a real one. Access to the closest virtual environment to reality is now generally through a VR headset, which takes over the user’s vision. Haptics, including gloves, vests, and even full-body tracking suits, activate a lifelike interaction with the virtual environment.
• Augmented Reality (AR): Augmented reality is less immersive than virtual reality. It adds digital layers over the real world through some type of lens. Users can still interact with their real-world environment. Pokémon Go is an early example of augmented reality. Google Glass and heads-up displays in car windshields are well-known AR products available to consumers. Whether VR and AR experiences become the primary interfaces of the metaverse remains to be seen. However, many metaverse-like experiences offered by gaming platforms such as Roblox, Decentraland, and Minecraft can currently be accessed through browsers, mobile devices, and a fast internet connection.

Metaverse Technologies

Technology writer Esther Shein says industry watchers are hesitant to codify the technologies that will power the metaverse. This is partly because the metaverse is still being developed, and many of the tools powering it are made up of multiple technologies.

For example, Gartner prefers to describe metaverse technologies in terms of “exact themes,” including spatial computing, digital humans, shared experiences, gaming, and tokenized assets. On the other hand, Forrester Research describes metaverse tools as tools that enable three-dimensional development environments. However, there is a consensus that the following seven technologies will have the most significant impact on the development of the metaverse in the coming decade: Artificial intelligence, Internet of Things (IoT), Extended Reality (ER), Brain-computer interfaces, 3D modeling and reconstruction, Spatial and edge computing, and Blockchain.

What is the Difference Between the Internet and the Metaverse?

The internet is a network of billions of computers, millions of servers, and other electronic devices. Once online, internet users can communicate with each other, view and interact with websites, and buy and sell goods and services.

The metaverse does not compete with the internet but is built on it. The internet is something people browse, but people can live to some extent in the metaverse. The development of the internet has given birth to many services that are paving the way for the creation of the metaverse.

In gaming, you see immersive video games like Roblox, Minecraft, and others, giving you an idea of what the metaverse is designed to offer.

What is the Use of the Metaverse in Today’s World?

The online gaming industry has decades of experience in creating immersive virtual worlds. The extent to which proto-metaverses are used in the mainstream and the large scale at which Roblox, Epic Games, and Decentraland are favored by users suggest that playing games, building virtual worlds, and investing in real estate can be part of the metaverse. Enterprises are experimenting with metaverse applications in the workplace built on virtual applications that companies can deploy to support remote work during pandemics. Early applications of metaverse technologies include workplace training. Some hospitals are already using virtual reality and augmented reality for training in common medical procedures. One recently approved technology is ‘Medivis,’ an AR surgical system that allows surgeons to quickly align with the hospital’s digital imaging system. Other metaverse-type applications coming in the future include:

• Digital Twin Avatars: These twin avatars will not only exist on computer screens but will be presented as holograms or holographic images powered by artificial intelligence (AI) to which tasks will be assigned. For example, a CEO could activate their AI-powered hologram to engage with multiple stakeholder groups simultaneously.
• Metaverse for Work Collaboration: Enterprises are starting to use the metaverse to add an element of realism to remote work experiences. This includes establishing 3D rooms where employees can interact with each other.

How do NFTs Fit into the Metaverse?

Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) play a significant role in the utility and popularity of the metaverse. NFTs are a secure type of digital asset based on the same blockchain technology that cryptocurrencies use. Unlike currency, an NFT can represent a piece of art, a song, or digital real estate. An NFT provides its owner with proof of a kind of digital ownership that can be bought or sold in the metaverse. The Metaverse Group positions itself as the world’s first virtual real estate company, acting as an agent to facilitate the purchase or rental of land or property in multiple virtual worlds of the metaverse, including Decentraland, Sandbox, Somnium, and Upland. Its offers include conference and commercial spaces, art galleries, family homes, and hangout spots.

As the metaverse has created opportunities for new companies like the Metaverse Group to offer digital goods, established companies that sell traditional products in brick-and-mortar stores are also joining in. For example, Nike acquired ‘RTFKT,’ a startup that creates a type of virtual sneaker using sports shoes and NFTs. Before acquiring the startup, Nike filed seven trademark applications to help create and sell virtual sneakers and apparel. Nike and Roblox also partnered on Nikeland, a digital world where Nike fans can play games, interact with each other, and dress their avatars in virtual apparel. NFTs and blockchain lay the foundation for digital ownership. An individual’s real-world identity ownership will also extend to the metaverse, with NFTs serving as the vehicle for this purpose.

Metaverse Companies

The three leading software vendors described below have their specific views on the metaverse:

• Meta (formerly Facebook): Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote in the announcement of the brand name change in October 2021: “From now on, we will be the metaverse, not Facebook. This is a significant change because it means that users will not need a Facebook account to use other services in the metaverse. In other non-Facebook products, the Meta company has already sold millions of Meta Quest units (formerly known as Oculus), which are virtual reality headsets used to navigate the metaverse. In Meta’s announcement, Zuckerberg said the company’s goal is to accelerate the development of foundational technologies, including social platforms and creative tools, needed to “bring the metaverse to life.” After the rebranding news in late 2021, Meta launched Horizon Worlds, a virtual reality space that includes tools for developers to create additional virtual worlds and where users can navigate as avatars. Meta’s massive investment in the metaverse is seen as a gamble by investors as the company faces revenue declines and layoffs due to economic uncertainty.
• Epic Games: Epic Games, creators of the popular online shooter game Fortnite, planned to join the metaverse in 2021 after $1 billion in funding, including $200 million from Sony Group Corporation. With nearly 350 million users and the Unreal Engine software for game developers, Epic Games’ approach to the metaverse differs from Meta (formerly Facebook) in that it wants to provide a communal space for users to interact with each other and brands without a news feed filled with advertisements.
• Microsoft: The metaverse is also coming to Microsoft Teams, the online meeting service of this large software company, which competes with Zoom. This new service allows Teams users at different physical locations to participate in virtual meetings and share holographic experiences during these virtual meetings. This platform includes a collection of AI-powered tools for avatar session management, spatial rendering, synchronization between multiple users, and “holoportation,” a 3D capture technology that allows users to recreate and transmit high-quality 3D models of people in real-time. During the Ignite conference in October 2022, this software giant launched a feature in private preview that allows people to create and use avatars during Teams meetings. Microsoft is working with the professional services firm Accenture to create immersive spaces powered by Mesh. Accenture hires more than a million people every year and uses Microsoft Mesh for onboarding new employees. New hires meet in Teams to receive instructions on creating digital avatars and accessing One Accenture Park, a communal virtual space that is part of the onboarding process. This amusement park-like space includes a central conference room, a virtual boardroom, and digital monorails that new hires use to travel to different locations.

When is the Full Metaverse Coming?

Although the concept of engaging in a virtual online world has been around for years, a real metaverse where lifelike interactions are possible seems years away. For example, in his 2021 year-end blog post, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates said that most people do not have VR goggles and motion capture gloves to accurately present their expressions, body language, and voice quality. However, for businesses, Bill Gates predicted that most virtual meetings would move from two-dimensional spaces to the metaverse, a three-dimensional space where participants appear as digital avatars, within the next two to three years.

How Will the Metaverse Affect the Future?

Since the metaverse is still just a collection of possibilities and not a reality, much remains hidden. What the metaverse will look like, who will control it, what it will encompass, and how it will impact our lives is still up for debate. In this spectrum of opinions, on one end are those who believe the metaverse will improve our lives, enabling experiences that are impossible in the physical world. Critics of the metaverse see it merely as an extension of existing digital experiences we have today but not transformative; and possibly, it could be worse: including the evils of current social media such as disinformation campaigns, addictive behaviors, and tendencies towards violence.

In a 2022 survey conducted by Elon University, North Carolina, in collaboration with the Imagining the Internet Center, the Pew Research Center asked 624 technology innovators, business leaders, and workers about the impact of the metaverse by 2040. The response was divided. According to the report, 54 percent of these experts said they expect the metaverse to be a fully functional, deeply engaging aspect of daily life for at least 1.5 billion people worldwide, while 46 percent said this would not happen.

Similarly, a survey of 4,600 business and technology leaders conducted by Accenture indicates that 71% of executives believe the metaverse will have a positive impact on their organization, but only 42% believe it will be a breakthrough or significant development.

How Should Businesses Prepare for the Metaverse?

Creating successful metaverse work environments will require more effort than merely grafting existing office space protocols onto virtual oases. In fact, early research suggests that simply converting existing offices into 3D virtual offices could reduce productivity and even cause nausea and motion sickness. However, like the internet of the 1990s, the metaverse represents an opportunity to shrink the world. Metaverse technologies can enhance friendships among teleworkers, improve collaboration, speed up training processes, reduce the need for office space, and make work more enjoyable. Additionally, the metaverse will also eliminate jobs, requiring companies to retrain workers.

Challenges Facing the Metaverse

Regardless of what form the metaverse takes, it poses significant challenges for cybersecurity and privacy. According to a security expert, the current lack of privacy regulations for the metaverse presents many risks for businesses and consumers, including:

• Misuse and application of existing privacy regulations
• Intrusive and excessive data collection
• Issues related to data rights and ownership
• Exploitation of minors
• User-to-user privacy

Businesses need to proactively develop a viable privacy policy tailored to their organizations and work with large metaverse platform owners and standard organizations to establish safeguards for security and privacy. Consumers will need to understand the security and data privacy policies of both the businesses they interact with and the metaverse platforms where those businesses exist.

The Fusion of Worlds:The Metaverse and the Future of Human Connection

As we stand on the brink of this digital renaissance, the metaverse beckons us into a realm where the boundaries between the virtual and the real blur, promising a future where our digital and physical lives intertwine more seamlessly than ever before. In this rapidly evolving landscape, the metaverse offers not just a new platform for interaction and commerce, but a profound shift in how we perceive identity, community, and the very fabric of reality. Embracing this future requires not only technological readiness but an openness to reimagining our place in a world where the possibilities are as limitless as our collective imagination. The journey into the metaverse is not just about adopting new technologies but about shaping a future where technology elevates human experience, fosters unprecedented connections, and opens new vistas of creativity and innovation. As we navigate this uncharted territory, the onus is on us to ensure that the metaverse evolves as an inclusive, equitable, and enriching extension of our physical world, promising a brighter, more connected future for all.