If you’ve read our previous blog post "Into the Metaverse", you hopefully have a bit of a grasp on the metaverse, the virtual social hub of the future. But how in the future is it, really?
Most experts agree that we’re at least a few years away from experiencing the metaverse to its full capacity, the way companies like Facebook envision. But that hasn’t stopped many big name companies from pushing forward and trying to make the metaverse a reality. Facebook, for example, renamed themselves Meta Platforms Inc., colloquially known as simply Meta, in October 2021 as a direct push to become a defining leader in the metaverse zeitgeist. Microsoft has their own metaverse called Mesh, and Nvidia has one called Omniverse. These are just a few players in a large, expensive game being played by anyone who wants to capitalize on the future of the metaverse.
The truth is, we’re headed toward the end of an era and into a brave new world of virtual reality, and it will probably affect more of our daily lives than you’d think. A digital cultural revolution has been simmering for years, but the COVID-19 pandemic has skyrocketed the need for digital spaces where we can connect, work, and even... buy real estate?
Yes, buying virtual homes is one of the hopes for the expanding metaverse, but it’s actually already a reality thanks to Decentraland, where the most expensive piece of virtual land just passed over three million dollars. Another ubiquitous use for the metaverse will probably be work — in his annual blog, Bill Gates predicted that most work meetings will be taking place in the metaverse, with the use of avatars, within three years. In January 2022, Facebook (Meta) even updated their 3D avatars to make them even more customizable, and you can now use these avatars in your Instagram stories in addition to your Facebook page and messages. Even luxury brands are jumping on the hype, with companies like Gucci and Louis Vuitton selling e-clothes and e-accessories so you can spruce up your avatars. You can even buy a half-a-million dollar virtual yacht.
The future of the metaverse is nearly upon us, and it’s easy to guess that it will start to affect most of our lives. The opportunities for virtual engagement will skyrocket, and the ability to start living more virtually (did we mention virtual malls?) will become more and more of a reality rather than a sci-fi dream. As of now, 300 thousand people already exist in Meta’s metaverse, Horizon Worlds. Only time will tell where the metaverse will take us, and what exciting new opportunities this new chapter will bring.
We’re sure you have lots of thoughts on the future of the metaverse — let us know in the comments what you think! We love to hear from you. If you want to learn even more about the metaverse, check out our previous blog post that discusses where exactly the idea of a metaverse came from.
