Metaverse or Metaverses?

From the future of big tech to the origins of the Internet

Behind the trendiest tech buzzword of the moment are a variety of visions of what an immersive-digital-future should?feel?like: from a fusion of digital and analog worlds to the next generation of the Internet characterized by the (still) large dominant tech players or by a landscape of decentralized actors, to a gimmickier experience relying mainly on virtual reality headsets (VR).

What are the implications of these different visions – particularly according to the time horizon in which they are projected – and how do they fit into broader debates on the governance of digital spaces?

From Sci-fi to reality: are we already in it?

Many futurists (including myself) believe that science fiction is always a?good source of inspiration?and illustration. This cannot be truer than with the case of the metaverse from which the concept of a long-term future where the digital world swallows the physical world directly originates. Movies like?The Matrix, and?Ready Player One?by Steven Spielberg give a very thorough vision involving a strong intertwining of the virtual and the real, where value and power could be found mostly within a digital realm deeply experienced through immersive devices.

This initial foresight vision of the metaverse undoubtedly acts as a point of reference, especially in the minds of big tech leaders. Elon Musk said that “if you assume any rate of improvement at all, games will eventually be indistinguishable from reality”[1]. To show the next evolution of social connections, Mark Zuckerberg shared the same perspective built on the same codes during his demonstration of?Horizon, where we would move seamlessly from one universe to another whether in the digital or analog world.

Coming back to today, in a way we are already in the metaverse. We spend a lot of time using digital services and devices, whether it’s for communication, entertainment, transactions, or developing social relationships (professional or personal). Most often they have real life consequences.

So why are we talking about the metaverse so much today, and what could change tomorrow?

Web3 Vs MAGMA: who will own the metaverse?

Since Second Life in 2003, one of the first large-scale online 3D virtual world experiences[2], socio-technical developments now make the success of similar projects credible. However,?the vision of the next 5 to 10 years is dominated by the VR headset.

While underlining the immersive capability of the metaverse – arguably it’s most important feature – the VR headset is just the tip of the meta-iceberg. As demonstrated by the gaming industry, immersivity is not just about Virtual or Augmented Reality. Online video games[3]?are unquestionably today the most advanced experience of the metaverse (...)

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