Metaverse : What's in it for us ?

" This new universe will create the largest impact in coming decade and it's here to stay "

What does it mean ?

• As per Gartner - The Metaverse is a collective virtual open space, created by the convergence of virtually enhanced physical and digital reality. It is physically persistent and provides enhanced immersive experiences.
• As per Wiki- It's?is a network of 3D?virtual worlds?focused on social connection. In?futurism?and?science fiction, the term is often described as a hypothetical?iteration of the?Internet?as a single, universal?virtual world?that is facilitated by the use of?virtual?and?augmented reality?headsets

How did it come to business ?

This term "Metaverse" was around since 1992 and was first coined by Neal Stephenson in his novel Snow Crash which was only a fictitious term and known only to lexicographers and science fiction enthusiasts. Metaverse is intended to create a parallel universe and most social media platforms want their thousands of engineers to focus on that - this would create endless possibilities to various industries.

Imagine your day's schedule : you wake up and don't have to travel to work - rather put on your AR Glasses and reach the destination of your office in Metaverse world (possibly seconds), which means minimal energy loss to start your working day. Your meetings with your clients are with their avatar and not their real self (creating a great deal of privacy), your evenings will be time-spent with other avatars and you can be visiting any retail outlet and order desired clothes through your avatar. There are many such possibilities..

Gartner's article quotes, activities that currently take place in siloed environments will eventually take place in a single Metaverse, such as:

• Purchasing outfits and accessories for online avatars
• Buying digital land and constructing virtual homes
• Participating in a virtual social experience
• Shopping in virtual malls via immersive commerce
• Using virtual classrooms to experience immersive learning
• Buying digital art, collectibles and assets (NFTs)
• Interacting with digital humans for onboarding employees, customer service, sales and other business interactions

What's in it for businesses ?

This means a whole new possibilities, specially the future generations. In no time mobile handsets will evolve into AR - devices, Eye-wears, Wearables, Hologram Walls etc.

Industries who will enhance this migration -

1. Social Media Tech Conglomerates- FAANG
2. Gaming Industry
3. FMCG & Retail
4. IOT Device Manufacturing
5. Mobility & AR Tech Companies

How Enterprises will be impacted ?

Workplace in the future will be essentially remote but there will be a journey to it as offices might evolve into creating home-like environments for their employees and possibly create services like workspace-homes where personal and official life will co-exist (the current pandemic is a major driver to this) which only helps the cause of Metaverse.

?Opportunities across multiple industries include:

• Higher education, medical, military and other types of trades can deliver a more immersive learning experience. They don’t need to create their own infrastructure, as the Metaverse will provide the framework.
• Virtual events, having gained popularity over the last two years, can now present more integrated offerings.
• Retail can extend its reach to an immersive shopping experience that allows for more complex products.
• Enterprises can achieve better engagement,?collaboration and connection with their employees?through virtually augmented workspaces.

This article is an opinion and not education about Metaverse, simply means I have read various other analyst posts and tried to put my thoughts here. If you liked this article - give me a thumps up.

Shashank Roy