Tech Trends - The Metaverse

Tech Trends – The Metaverse

The term ‘Metaverse’ has become a fairly nebulous phrase in recent years. Ever since Meta popularised the term with their less-than-stellar Metaverse plans, it has become difficult to disentangle the concept from the vision Zuckerberg had back in 2021. Zuckerberg’s pandemic project is not the be all and end all of the Metaverse, however, and as far flung as it may sound, the technology actually has the potential to completely reinvent business as we know it. That’s why on this edition of Tech Trends, we’re taking a closer look at the Metaverse, what it is, how it works, and what use cases it may have for business in the future.

Meta-what?

It may be easier, when describing the Metaverse, to imagine it as a city. Within a city, you have all aspects of human existence. Businesses, schools, parks and clubs – cities are a handy little microcosm to view how humanity organises itself. The Metaverse is the same idea, just completely digital. It can facilitate a near-unlimited space where really anything can go. This can mean big things for business, and international corporations have begun to catch on to this idea. Back in 2022, a McKinsey survey found that more than $120 billion of corporate investment had flown into Metaverse-related investments, with predictions putting the Metaverse’s net worth at around $5 trillion by 2030. So clearly big players are seeing a lot of potential here. But what makes the Metaverse so special?

At it’s most basic, the Metaverse will facilitate three core functionalities:

·??????Immersion

·??????Interactivity in real-time

·??????Complete user agency

As the Metaverse develops, we will start to see features such as the ability for platforms, solutions and devices to work in complete tandem with each other, from across the globe. You can think of the Metaverse as the next step in the internet’s evolution, and that itself may explain why the idea has yet to pick up pace globally (remember, the internet was first conceived of in 1970, and it was only in the mid to late 90’s that it became widespread.)

So, what does the modern Metaverse actually contain? Put simply, the modern metaverse contains 4 categories of content:

Enablers – focusing on security and privacy, enable the Metaverse to function.

·??????Digital identity tools

·??????Payment tools

·??????Cyber security solutions

Infrastructure/Hardware – how you interact with the Metaverse.

·??????Cloud Computing architecture

·??????Networks

·??????Edge Computing

·??????Operating Systems

Experiences – what you can do in the Metaverse.

·??????Gaming

·??????Events hosted in the Metaverse

·??????Virtual worlds/groups

·??????Product demos

Platforms – facilitate usage and discovery of metaverse content.

·??????User created Metaverse sites

·??????Virtual stores

·??????Social hubs

That should give you a bit more insight into the pace of development within the Metaverse. In the words of Technologist Matthew Ball, “We’re going to see more brands, more investment, more M&A, and more users in all things 3-D and real-time rendered.” But how will we access the Metaverse? A concept like this, which touts near complete immersion, will be miles more advanced than just sitting in front of a computer screen. That’s where Virtual and Augmented reality come in.

AR and VR

Augmented and Virtual reality tools facilitate a much easier navigation of the current Metaverse than simply sitting at a desktop. Advanced AR headsets effectively enable a user to experiencer an AR ‘overlay’ in their day-to-day life, essentially blending the real world and the Metaverse together. Think of Apple’s new Vision Pro headset as an example. In the future, AR tech will become much less ‘clunky’ (imagine a pair of AR contact lenses) and will pair with other technologies such as 5g and Edge computing to facilitate seamless Metaverse access in near all aspects of everyday life.

Virtual Reality, on the other hand, refers to the technology which facilitates a user entering a completely digital simulation, usually through using a headset and calibrated joysticks, interacting with it in a way that seems realistic. At the moment, VR is mainly relegated to the gaming industry, however it to has unlimited potential when paired with AR and the Metaverse.

The possibilities of these two technologies become fully realised when we consider the concept of ‘Mixed Reality’. This phrase refers to any content or experience which is powered by both AR and VR technologies working in tandem. This concept is still in its infancy, but in the future mixed reality may be everywhere. Imagine being able to demo a product live, and streamed through the metaverse, where you can pick up a prototype in real life and have it seamlessly transfer over to the digital side of your presentation. Then, imagine you simulate the construction of said product in real time using digital rendering, having it come to life not only virtually, but in reality, as well through the use of an AR overlay. At the very least, the explosion in efficiency for product development facilitated by the Metaverse could be astronomical, allowing seamless transition of ideas for solutions into the virtual space where they can be accurately simulated before they’ve even left the drawing board in real life.

Metaverse – A Blessing or A Curse?

As with everything in life, there are genuine risks to weigh up against the perceived benefits of the Metaverse. Below, we have listed some of the core benefits and risks for you to make your own judgements on this burgeoning technological space. One thing to keep in mind, is that the Metaverse is still very much in its infancy. You can expect a lot of the core issues and concerns surrounding the space to be ironed out and solved before it becomes a viable and widely used infrastructure (like the internet.)

Benefits

Complete immersion: With the possibilities for complete audio, visual, and physical (through haptic feedback technologies), the Metaverse could allow users to be completely immersed in an experience. This alone could be huge for the entertainment industry.

Seamless interaction between the digital and real worlds: As discussed in our earlier example, mixed reality technologies could allow users to transition elements from their real and virtual worlds between each other. Imagine if a paramedic could access an AI powered analysis of a crash victim in real time, giving them access to contextually life-saving information.

Metaverse for all: Combining open-source software with distributed data architecture such as Edge computing could see a proliferation of free tools and platforms available to developers within the Metaverse, benefitting innovation while in some cases completely democratising some operations.

Increased quality of life: For those suffering from life-altering disabilities, the Metaverse could offer a way for these individuals to increase their own quality of life. Additionally, the free form and accelerated nature of idea exchange within the Metaverse could see an explosion of human innovation and creativity.

Risks

Security: There has been a noticeable rise in the proliferation and severity of Crypto scams alongside malicious software such as AI malware and Identity-based crimes. A platform like the Metaverse, powered by Blockchain and based around user identity, will need to effectively address these security issues to protect its user’s digital identity.

Privacy: Adjacent to security, privacy is another big question for the Metaverse. As the space will utilise digital renderings of individuals, webcams, personal data etc – a user’s privacy may be at risk. For the Metaverse to succeed, the space must have fail safes in place to prevent these elements from being hacked or exploited.

Pollution: The Metaverse of the future will undoubtedly be powered by VR and AR alongside massive data centres such as Cloud. AI will have a hand in facilitating all of this, as the speed required to facilitate billions of operations a second and draw insights to improve user experience can only really come from the processing power of AI. Training AI effectively consumes a huge amount of energy (think in the realm of 626,000 pounds of C02 per training set.) For the Metaverse to succeed, a sustainable solution mu7st be found to its potentially astronomical energy requirements.

Metaverse and Business

It may be becoming clear to you how the Metaverse has the potential to impact every aspect of human existence. Business, of course, is no exception. The Metaverse and associated technology could see the biggest explosion in business efficiency and innovation since the industrial revolution. Read on to see how.

1.?????Business Operations: AR is already being used within different sectors to facilitate improvements to business operations. We touched upon how AR may be used within the Metaverse previously to further accelerate this earlier in this article, however it is important enough to mention again. With the ability for data to be always present in a metaverse environment, operations from front line IT support to back-end coding, becomes powered by all data available to the business and the individual, alongside enabling professionals to become better co-ordinated with each other. Operations will become faster, more efficient, and more collaborative – accelerating growth and innovation to never before seen levels.

2.?????Enhanced Customer Experience: The Metaverse opens up a plethora of new opportunities for organisation to interact with their customers and clients. Imagine being guided, step by step, with an AR overlay, through the installation of a new internal solution – with targeted, contextual suggestions on how best to implement and optimise said solution for your business from day 1. You could test drive a new car without leaving your house or explore digitally reconstructed cities on a historical tour – the possibilities genuinely are endless.

3.?????Digital Twins: Modern 3D rendering software can emulate an individual’s features right down to the emotions displayed on their faces. This would allow ‘in-person virtual’ meetings to take place no matter the geographical location of attendees. This technology also allows professionals to work with each other on the same footing, combating the ‘zoom fatigue’ many leaders and employees faced over the pandemic. This concept of a ‘digital twin’ could also be applied to more labour-intensive industries. Technicians can utilise VR headsets to see through the eyes of an engineer who may be client side, helping guide the engineer through a repair or installation, while also providing technical knowledge to the client if needed. In an increasing digital business landscape, the metaverse promises a new era of intelligent operations which leaders should be looking to capitalise on.

4.?????Advertising and Marketing: organisations have already begun creating digital entities for themselves to be used in the Metaverse. In the future, digital conferences will allow businesses to demo finished products virtually, whether that be a new car or a solution, even while they’re still on the drawing board. Additionally, advertising will become seamlessly integrated into the Metaverse experience, allowing for increased brand awareness.

5.?????New Revenue Streams: Utilising the concept of the NFT, large corporations are already creating digital items such as clothing for the avatars of consumers within the Metaverse. These digital assets fluctuate in value and could see the creation of an entire digital-only market which will open up new revenue streams for businesses.

A Digital Future

We hope that you now have a sense of the potential of the Metaverse for all aspect of life. For business in particular, the improvements to efficiency, innovation, and general processes/operations are astronomical, making the Metaverse an opportunity leaders should not pass up. As with everything which is still in early stages, however, there is still a long way to go before the Metaverse becomes a completely viable business space. A huge part of this innovation will be restricted by the pace of development for certain technologies such as AI and mixed reality. This does, however, leave business leaders with an opportunity. If confident enough to make a successful case to the board, early investors in the Metaverse are in a unique position to corner part of the market very early on. This could put forward-thinking players in a position to steer the direction of innovation and development within the Metaverse, putting them at the forefront of this new digital technology, and leaving them ahead of competitors. We’ll leave you with this food for thought as we tie up this edition of Tech Trends. As always, thank you for reading, and we’ll see you next time!