Nowadays, the internet is the center of the world, it’s a luxury that has become a necessity for the entire humanity. No one can imagine waking up one day not having access to the internet, social media or any virtual connection. Nowadays, our presence on the net has an entire identity that has been created and developed through the years. The world’s biggest companies have been working vigorously for a while, following the metaverse trend, working even on creating futuristic devices using new technologies defying all present existing ones. The purpose is to attract the audience and users, contributing to the birth of the numeric generation. Despite a promising future, the metaverse concept is still incomprehensible and scary for the vast majority. So here’s all possible answers to your questions in relation to the metaverse’s universe: it’s origins, concept, it’s possible hidden aspect and its evolution perspectives.
Origins of Metaverse
Even though the enthusiasm and excitement for the metaverse hasn’t been around before the last few months, it’s important to know that the concept of virtual reality has existed for some time. The word metaverse has appeared for the first time in 1992 in Neal Stephenson’s Book « Virtual Samourai » where the author describes a 100% virtual world calling it « metaverse ». That’s not all! The same book has inspired a lot of entrepreneurs, filmmakers, directors and video game producers.
That’s why it’s very important for us to ask the right questions: Did the ancient intellectuals predict the future or are the entrepreneurs of today marking it?
Metaverse’s definition
First of all, the word itself is a fusion of two words : meta and universe which stands for a virtual and a fictitious universe, a parallel world where different residents can connect and interact, exchange and entertain themselves. Metaverse is considered to be the future of everything, including the internet. It’s a digital revolution, a 3D descendant of the internet.
Does Metaverse really exist?
It’s in late December 2000 that the « second life » project was created by Linden Lab, since then it has seduced over 20 million users in addition to renowned brands. « Second life » as it’s name says, allows users of this virtual space to have a parallel life the way they want it to be. This ‘escape’ has long been dreamt of. Misfortunately, it didn’t last because of the 2008 subprime crisis which slowed down the project and caused its failure. Though, it wasn’t the only project, the famous video game fortnite has 350 million users during lockdown. It’s more than a game but a virtual social space that has evolved due to the sanitary crisis of 2019. The purpose of Fortnite was not gaming for itself, but the makers wanted to offer to its users an authentic and unique virtual space where they could entertain themselves. The American famous rapper Travis Scott performed at an unusual virtual show hosted by Fortnite where 27.7 million participants from all over the world gathered during 3 days. The event was a true success, users enjoyed a great scene performance accompanied by a peak in creativity, an unmatched gaming event, using a very realistic avatar of the American rapper, 3D special effects and a psychedelic decoration. Another example following the same trend is Facebook which is now under the brand Meta Platforms, its founder, Mark Zuckerberg, announced his new strategy and explained the sudden change of name which was mainly due to Zuckerberg’s new project, promising users a digital revolution in social media using a more advanced platform, a more connected one, based on new technologies for a full virtual social experience that gathers people, using 3D avatars for entertainment, work and more. The metaverse universe already exists, it’s not only a virtual platform made for public entertainment, but it’s becoming more of a work and communication tool, a remarkable one. The project launched by Synantoo for example is a videoconference based on these new technologies, notably virtual reality and 3D which is very close to a virtual metaverse , it’s like a « second life » for professionals knowing that it’s a 100% virtual space with realistic 3D meeting rooms and 3D outdoor spaces, very resembling and unique avatars.
The goal is to help enterprises organize themselves at best using an adapted tool for all of their professional events such as reunions, workshops, team buildings…etc.
It’s a virtual space for learning which can be used for education and remote learning. Synantoo hasn’t neglected the amusing part of the virtual world because they conceived spaces made for entertainment, coffee breaks and even a game room where you can enjoy a few games with colleagues during a pause or after work is over.
Should We Be Afraid Of metaverse ?
Opinions are much divided! Sure, it’s a remarkable success, many are preoccupied with this mysterious future. The idea of a virtual world, fictitious characters, absence of real human contact is making some people afraid. People are speaking about a metamorphosis, dissociation which can have a disastrous impact on social life and humanity as a whole, going back to reality is going to become harder and this virtual shaped life will not be inconsequential. Humanity will feel more vulnerable and exposed regarding personal data.
In conclusion, the future of the metaverse is very promising even though a lot of people still ignore it. This new concept intrigued and scared people at the same time. A few years from now, metaverse is going to impose itself and we might find ourselves living our life within one of these virtual universes.
It’s not only about a successor for nowadays social media, but a renaissance which must be well exploited, so metaverse must be carefully developed that It protects it’s users, all while having in mind the fundamentals of humanity and human rights because metaverse certainly will provide a lot of help for humanity, it will allow us to explore the world, create relationships, develop our businesses, visit virtual showrooms, promote and communicate in an original way, create virtual events and finally gather people together no matter how many they are, anytime. We must focus mainly on the key functions of virtual reality despite all of the advantages it may provide us, we must have humanity in mind: its physical and mental well being as a priority, all in the sake of a future where metaverse’s existence within humanity will be considered as an opportunity with added value to mankind.