Why the Internet Needs Walls
Journée Founder and CEO Christian Mio Loclair discusses the opportunities of the metaverse at the SAP Design Talks
Written by Andrea Waisgluss
To Loclair, the way that today’s Internet is designed does not serve its users. It’s a rather ugly, uninviting space designed to keep us trapped in a loop. If you type in skateboarding videos on YouTube and refresh your feed, you’ll soon believe that the whole world consists of only skateboarding, says Loclair. That’s because the Internet is designed to deeply and efficiently suck you in via an algorithm that functions much like a feedback loop, giving you recommendations based on more of the same. The problem is that unlike the experience of entering into a physical space, the Internet never explicitly states that it has encapsulated you within an algorithm that will continue feeding you this content. You don’t see it, he argues. And, compared to, say, the physical experience of entering a museum — buying a ticket, entering into the building, walking from room to room to view a specific exhibition — you have never made that conscious decision to enter this room that now seems to be somehow borderless.
“What the Internet doesn’t offer is essentially a social contract. Very often in my field of work we’re asked, why does the internet need walls? That’s a very good question. But make no mistake. These rooms are not bubbles. The metaverse was never about room, it was always about slowing down the internet.”
A former professional dancer, Loclair is the co-founder and Creative Director at Waltz Binaire and Journee — The Metaverse Company, as well as Lead Artist at Studio Christian Mio Loclair. Through the use of custom algorithms, data and digital devices, his work portrays the aesthetics and frictions of human and digital identity. One of his most consuming projects to date has been his exploration of the metaverse as a solution to the problems of the Internet. His company Journée offers companies a chance to use the metaverse to connect people within virtual space in a new way, asking them to consciously enter a space, slow down, and give their full attention.
“For us, time is literally a KPI that we present to our client. We build a world, we go to them and we show that users stayed 15 minutes willingly. And they’re like, okay, this is complete world record for online communication.”
What can the metaverse offer the Internet? A design chance, says Loclair. Something much faster than the physical world, more scalable, and more beautiful. And yet much, much slower than the digital space we know today. “It’s not about entrapping us more. It’s about a design chance to slow down the Internet to more human factor, to build lasting relationships and communicate the challenges ahead of us that need time to be processed by each of us.”
Finding better ways to come closer together and build up culture and community is becoming especially important as companies continue to move towards more hybrid models of working. Here too the metaverse offers a chance to create better experiences and to convey a corporate culture beyond endless Teams calls. “Imagine if we could share with our remote employees a living culture, a working culture that is somehow connected to a certain space that can be experienced online.” That is the promise of the metaverse.
The SAP Design Talks regularly bring leaders from the international design scene to SAP. The sessions are held for an internal audience of employees at various SAP locations and are broadcast live around the globe. Visit the SAP Design Talks webpage to see video interviews and more from previous talks.
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