It was an exciting morning as we saw two industry insiders – Vitaliy from Vostok VR and Shaun from Aventis, delve into the latest developments and trends on the Metaverse. In case you couldn’t tune in, here’s what you missed.
❓ Defining the Metaverse
Kicking off the fireside chat, our guest speakers touched on their own definition of the ever-evolving concept of the Metaverse.
Vitaliy sees the Metaverse akin to a ‘3D internet’, where physical objects can be brought into the digital space. He also emphasized the ability of the Metaverse to bring together projects from different companies, allowing users to easily browse and interact with them.
Shaun also highlighted the potential for education in the Metaverse, particularly in providing affordable and accessible opportunities for underprivileged individuals. As part of the Metaverse for Good initiative, Shaun worked with Sandbox and Smobler Studios to provide technical courses and scholarship funding to empower individuals from India and Africa with the skills necessary to work in Metaverse-related fields.
⚖️ The Metaverse as an Equalising Force
Discussing the use cases they were most optimistic about, Vitaliy highlighted the potential of the Metaverse for education, particularly in complex fields difficult to teach through traditional means, such as the medical field. By making medical education accessible to everyone, the Metaverse has the potential to change the dynamics of the labour market and reduce barriers to entry for certain professions. Additionally, the Metaverse can be useful for training employees in mission-critical tasks with high-risk scenarios, such as oil rig work in the oil and gas industry. Through providing a safe and controlled environment for training, the Metaverse has the potential to reduce accidents and fatalities in these industries.
For Shaun, the Metaverse holds a top spot in today’s leading technological solutions, due to its ability to complement emerging technology in the fields of cloud computing and robotics. Citing the example of Meta working with sensors and haptic feedback technology to augment sensers of touch and feel in the Metaverse for users, and how the Unity game engine is being used to provide a virtual space for companies train AI for a number of different use cases, Shaun illustrated how the Metaverse can be used in conjunction with other technologies to create even more immersive and engaging experiences.
? Getting Started with the Metaverse
Our speakers also provided some invaluable advice on how businesses with no prior knowledge could get started on the Metaverse.
Vitaliy recommends experiencing the Metaverse for yourself, stating that there’s no better time to get involved given the pullback in the crypto markets which have made renting or buying virtual land more accessible. Some other advice he provided included doing research on which Metaverse world would work best for your audience and looking into business support programs that could benefit you. Additionally, it’s important to start small, testing the waters by building bit-by-bit to observe the demand and potential returns before deciding to scale up.
Explaining that there’s no one-sized-fits-all way to execute a Metaverse-focused business strategy, Shaun emphasized the importance of consulting with players from different industries to find out how to provide value for your users. Since ideas can vary greatly depending on the nature of your business – from GameFi products for gaming companies for “try before you fly” experiences for tourism-related companies, it’s important to focus on building quality ideas and connections with trusted players before preparing to execute any Metaverse-related strategy.
? Concluding Thoughts
While it’s difficult to predict the future of the Metaverse with certainty, the possibilities for the Metaverse are already expanding, with the concept showing promise as a widespread social platform, a valuable tool for businesses, or even a new form of entertainment.
Still, companies should factor in the uncertainty of this technology when deciding to invest in a Metaverse-related business strategy, as whatever that’s created today may become irrelevant in the future.