Diving into the Immersive Metaverse, the Next Chapter of Social Connection
The COVID-19 pandemic have led to significant changes in our day-to-day basis. We all got used to attend meetings on platforms like Zoom or Microsoft Teams where you can see your classmates, collegues or co-workers in those boring 2D little boxes. NOW, Imagine being able to access an alternate digital world where you can interact with all of them in a 3D environnement. Well, that’s the point of the Metaverse.
What actually is the Metaverse?
Metaverse = Meta + Universe
Meta: in greek, refers to “after” or “beyond”.
Universe: is all existing matter and space considered as a whole; the cosmos.
Metaverse stands for online spaces that allow people to interact in a more immersive way than a traditional website. This could be through VR by wearing a VR headset or referring to virtual environments where you have an avatar so you can walk arround and interact with other people’s avatars like in a video game.
“Snow Crash”, the new Simpsons
The idea of Metaverse is not new. The term first appeared in the author Neil Stephenson’s sicence-fiction novel “Snow Crash” in 1992. “Metaverse” was used to refer to a virtual reality-based successor to the internet. In the novel, people use digital avatars to interact with the online world to escape reality.
Come one, let’s build the Metaverse!
Wait, HOW? Unlike VR apps, the metaverse isn’t a single software platform that can be built, it’s a little more complex than that, it relies on 7 distinct layers:
- Infrastructure —Network components and Connectivity technologies that power the metaverse such as 5G, Wi-Fi, cloud, and graphics processing units (GPUs).
- Human interface — VR headsets, AR glasses, haptics, and other technologies that allow our physical body to reach the digital world.
- Decentralisation — Which means uncontrolled by a single entity and belonging to no one and everyone at the same time. Tools of democratisation such as blockchain, artificial intelligence, edge computing, and other tools.
- Spatial computing — Technologies such as AR, VR, extended reality (XR) and mapping, 3D visualisation and modelling frameworks in general.
- Creator economy — Refers to the tech used to create metaverse experiences, such as design tools and apps, digital assets, e-commerce establishments, and workflow platforms.
- Discovery — Can be either classified as inbound (app stores, reviews and ratings) or outbound (notifications and ads).
- Experiences — Is where the user engages with immersive worlds, games, shopping, NFTs, and more.
Top 4 Companies Developing the Metaverse Right Now:
About three decades after “Snow Crash”, companies like Meta (Facebook), Microsoft, Roblox and Epic Games are working to build their own metaverses.
Meta
Facebook, rebranded to Meta, will transition from a social media company to a metaverse company in the next five years. Meta already introduced a social VR platform for the Quest headset called Horizon Worlds.
Microsoft
Microsoft also talked about converging the digital and physical worlds by creating Mesh for Microsoft Teams to allow people to connect and collaborate with a feeling of presence through personalized avatars and immersive spaces.
Decentraland
There is also a specific type of metaverse which uses blockchain technology, one of such blockchain based virtual worlds is Decentraland, a 3D virtual world browser-based platform, where users can buy digital assets such as clothes and even lands using cryptocurrencies.
NVIDIA
NVIDIA is distribuing free copies of a programme built for developing Metaverse-ready assets known as Omniverse for 3D simulation and design collaboration. Omniverse is based on Pixar’s Universal Scene Description and NVIDIA RTX™ technology.
Difference between video games and Metaverse:
You may be wondering that online video games are some sort of Metaverse. Well, not quite, I’ll tell you why in a second.
Video games like Roblox, Fortnite and Minecraft certainly have highly immersive 3D worlds but they are not really part of the Metaverse. The main concern of the Metaverse is to make online experience more real, immersive, and lifelike by wearing VR or AR goggles or even haptic gloves so you can interact with objects in the metaverse using your hands. However, when you play video games you are sitting in front of your computer screen or playing on your phone.
Metaverse vs Web 3.0:
The first version of the internet “Web 1”, also called the read-only internet, is an internet with no interactions, it existed between approximately 1991 and 2004. The internet we use right now is called “Web 2” which is dominated by social media and user-generated content. “Web 3” will be about ownership, it’s a new way of re-engineering the internet based on blockchain technology which incorporates concepts including decentralization and token-based economics in order to increase data security, privacy, and scalability.
Advantages of the Metaverse:
Immersive Digital Communication
The major advantage of the metaverse is to provide a more immersive form of digital communication in which individuals can interact with each other using avatars in a complex lifelike virtual environment.
Taking Social Media Platforms to the next level
Social media platforms are 2D two-dimensional, communications are limited to screen-to-screen interactions. The Metaverse allows a virtual face-to-face interaction!
Solving Remote Work Challenges
Remote work is lacking the most important ingredient of a more productive work environment which is real-life face-to-face interactions between employers and employees. With the Metaverse, those interactions can be established in a virtual 3D environment.
New opportunities for Virtual Commerce
You guessed it right. Metaverse will provide a more immersive way of promoting services and products. Ads and virtualized storefronts will be highly interactive in the sense that customers will be able to interact with merchants and the merchandizes in graphics-heavy virtualized stores which leads to more engagement and interest.
Interactive Education
You may have noticed that learning through video conferencing platforms like Zoom are considerably passive and indirect. However, through an immersive virtual world, the learning experience is more interactive and engaging. Students can walk, write notes, and communicate with other students and with teachers as well. They will have a better understanding of scientific concepts, methods and experiments by using holographic 3D images and animated visalizations.
Conclusion
Metaverse is the convergence point of the virtual and physical worlds. It aims to overcome the limitations faced in real life. Although, the Metaverse is in its early age of development, it might be the breakthrough every industry needs to elevate itself to the next level to stay ahead of competition that’s why big companies are taking the race to invest in Metaverse and deploy their own virtual worlds.
NFTs are extremely related to the Metaverse. This connection is related to digital assets and how they are given value. In fact, NFTs will allow Metaverse users to put a price on their digital forms of art and property content with unique proof of ownership.
To learn more about NFTs, check out my previous article “NFTs : The Next Revolution” on Predict.
