The Role Of Data In The Metaverse

 In his sci-fi novel Snow Crash, Neal Stephenson introduced the word “metaverse” all the way back in 1992. In the novel, the metaverse is a computer-generated universe for its protagonist Hiro, amplified by his goggles and headsets. And ever since Facebook changed its name to Meta and CEO Mark Zuckerberg effectively bet his company’s future on the metaverse, the hullabaloo surrounding the term only seems to be increasing daily. But what is the metaverse?

The Covid-19 pandemic forced many of us to work from home, taking part in meetings via Zoom and interacting will our colleagues over Slack. But what if we can create a more immersive world? A world where we can teleport ourselves somewhere to interact with our friends, family and colleagues without physically being present there? Imagine being able to work, learn, play, shop, create and do so many other things that we cannot do just using our computers and mobile phones. I believe the next version of the internet will offer these experiences in a combined virtual space that is the metaverse.

Now, metaverse is a universal word used to describe a combined virtual space, but there are specific technologies that comprise it. Augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), head-mounted displays (HMD), the Internet of Things (IoT), 5G, artificial intelligence and spatial technologies are some of them. These technologies, when combined, offer the complete metaverse experience. However, in order to provide that experience, these technologies will need to rely on data to a large extent, particularly good data (i.e., data with integrity). This article will attempt to discuss the role of data in the metaverse and how some of the aforementioned technologies can leverage that data.

One of the key elements of the metaverse is using avatars to represent ourselves. Our avatars would be similar to our profile pictures that we use on social media sites, but not the static ones that we currently use. Instead, they would be dynamic, 3D representations of us. And we might have multiple avatars—one for gaming, one for our professional lives, one for hanging out with our friends, etc.

App creators would be able to offer us these avatars in the metaverse, but how would they create them? AI, one of the metaverse technologies I previously mentioned, would play a critical role in designing these customizable avatars. AI can analyze 2D user images or 3D scans to create realistic and accurate avatars. We’re already seeing this play out in the real world with apps like Lensa, which takes users’ profile pictures and uses AI to convert them into digital avatars. And as part of the work that we do for our clients at Zuci Systems, we are exploring the possibility of AI being able to create models that provide suggestions for user avatars for our healthcare clients.

Another element of the metaverse that would rely on data significantly is the use of digital twins. These are digital representations of physical infrastructure and devices that data scientists and IT professionals can use to run simulations on. Digital twins are continuously updated with historical as well as current data from various sources to create an up-to-date representation as soon as new information becomes available.

At our company, we are in the early stages of using digital twins for one of our large clients, but we can already see how digital twin technology would have an impact on the AR and VR components of the metaverse. The use of digital twin technology can come in handy for metaverse app creators to test various scenarios or specific settings before actually implementing them as part of the metaverse.

A recent McKinsey article notes that digital twin technology will play a key role in helping shape the “enterprise metaverse.” The article states: “Ultimately, the ‘enterprise metaverse’ will be powered by dozens of interconnected digital twins that replicate everything from physical assets (like products and office buildings) to people (such as customers and employees) to core business processes and often interact with the physical environment without human intervention.” One can only imagine the amount of data in a scenario like this.

The technologies mentioned here are certainly going to play a critical role in the development of the metaverse. And needless to say, high-quality training data will be required so that developers can use these technologies to build the platforms and apps that will allow the metaverse to reach its full potential.

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Article resource: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2023/01/30/the-role-of-data-in-the-metaverse/?sh=5e0ac567792f

The Metaverse Will Stir Up Software Development In 2023

 Software is an expression of the business. To achieve this expression, developers face a sea of constant opportunities — and challenges. For every API champion coming out of the business, there’s a security threat to citizen development at the permitter. For all the progress in value stream management, there is little progress being made in metaverse API standards. Software development is a continuous set of ups and downs that people must navigate, whether they are professional or citizen developers.

The Future Of Social Media In The Metaverse

Social media is the archetypal web2 application – the enabler of the “user-generated web”. But that doesn’t mean it will die out with the onset of the metaverse and web3. In the metaverse, features and functionalities we’ve all become accustomed to – "liking," "sharing," and the “for you” page – are no longer confined to social applications. They are there when we are gaming, working, learning, or whatever other activities we are getting up to within connected, virtual worlds.

How the Metaverse Is So Much More Than a Gaming World

It's obvious that big brands have come public with their support for the metaverse, but what 'exactly' is metaverse?

The metaverse continues to push forward in the technological realm as more individuals and brands have caught wind of its overwhelming potential. Despite its newfound popularity, the idea of the metaverse is far from being a brand-new concept. Until recently, it was merely an idea that had been introduced and toggled with, but it was never officially created as past attempts lost traction over time.

Much of its recent rise in popularity can be directly attributed to Facebook's rebranding to 'Meta' back in October of 2021. The social media platform cited plans to invest $10 billion into the metaverse last year alone and make a full transition into it within the next five years. Along with Facebook, big names such as Microsoft have begun crafting their own metaverse vision as well.

The metaverse explained

It's obvious that big brands have come public with their support for the metaverse, but what 'exactly' is it? The answer is quite a bit more complex than one might expect, but, no, it's not an alternate universe that humans can physically transport to (like some movies and science fiction novels might suggest).

The term metaverse can be credited to author, Neal Stephenson, in his 1992 science fiction novel "Snow Crash," a book about a hacker who goes back and forth between Los Angeles and a virtual reality called the metaverse.

Since then, the term metaverse has largely expanded to being a virtual world that includes augmented reality, 3D avatars, and virtual reality. The metaverse is essentially a world that allows its users to do things like socially interact with one another, conduct transactions, and play games.

Companies are utilizing the metaverse as a growth strategy

Bloomberg has reported that the digital environment is going to grow to 800 million by 2025 and will multiply to 2.5 trillion by 2030. With that in mind, it's no surprise that companies, especially the tech-savvy ones, are seeing value in the metaverse.

For one, it has two major areas of distinction: interactivity and interoperability. From users communicating and interacting with one another to shopping and trying on clothes, the possibilities are truly endless. Some companies, such as Adidas, have even created their own NFTs that give holders exclusive access to their products. Shortly after launch, Addidas managed to sell $22 million worth of NFTs in one afternoon.

Metaverse projects and their offerings

Below are some projects that bring incredible value within the metaverse. This not only includes gaming but a variety of other uses.

Decentraland

Decentraland is a 3D virtual world that allows its users to buy virtual plots of land and other objects as NFTs using MANA, which is located on the Ethereum blockchain.

The project has laid out a variety of other offerings since its launch, including its first music festival organized by BEAR NFT back in 2021. More recently, the project opened a virtual shopping mall in March of this year that includes luxury fashion brand Dolce and Gabbana along with web3 brands like FangGang.

Sandbox

Like Decentraland, Sandbox is basically a gaming platform on steroids. Users can buy their own land using the above-mentioned method.

In contrast to Decentraland, one of Sandbox's most interesting features is called VoxEdit, which allows its users to create their own NFTs. After being created, users can upload, publish, and sell their creations via the Sandbox NFT marketplace. In addition, the platform has a feature called The Sandbox Game Maker that allows users to build their very own 3D games without having any prior coding experience.

A prominent piece of the Sandbox puzzle is the SAND token, which is required to do things like play games, conduct transactions, and customize avatars.

GAMA

GAMA s unique in its approach to create a one-of-a-kind user experience through multi-layerd entertainment events, games and graphic storytelling formats that have been previously introduced in the form of both physical and digital collectibles.

While the project focuses on building an immersive entertainment experience for its community, it also takes it one step further. GAMA aims to expand its metaverse offering through other forms of collaborations with talent and brands that are looking for a metaverse offering with the opportunity to reach a vast global community. These formats are laying the foundation for future immersive experiences that can be built and played within a universal metaverse.

Unlike platforms like Sandbox and Roblox, GAMA aims to give users a realistic experience instead of a pixelated appearance that's commonly integrated with early metaverse platforms. They execute this strategy using the computer graphics game engine, Unreal 5. This engine, which was developed by Epic Games, is used by high-end games and has also been adopted by the television and film industry.

Most recently, GAMA showcased aspects of its platform offerings through live events at NYC.NFT and at San Diego Comic-Con. Attendees were able to get a first look at the upgraded GSS metaverse while getting access to exclusive opportunities by attending. Features such as private living quarters and space-themed zero gravity areas lend themselves to creating a futuristic environment for every user while delivering unique value through NFTs.

Gaming, transactions, and so much more

Metaverses are most often seen in the same light as video games. While many are geared towards gamers, the concept opens itself to a wide number of possibilities in and outside of the gaming industry. In fact, metaverses are most defined by the social aspect; it brings users together within a virtual space.

There's much more to the metaverse than what meets the eye. It's a virtual world that has endless possibilities and use cases, especially for brands longing to see scaling and growth. It's going to be incredibly interesting to see how the metaverse evolves over the next decade. It certainly has the potential to transform the way people interact in the digital world.

Note: Investment in cryptocurrency and crypto assets is subject to financial risk and readers should do their own due diligence. Entrepreneur Media does not endorse any such investment.

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Article resource: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/432705 

Metaverse giants form new standards to address lack of interoperability

Big-name tech companies such as Meta, Microsoft, and Epic Games have formed a standards organization called the Metaverse Standards Forum (MSF). This is meant to be a group that creates open standards for all things metaverse, including virtual reality, augmented reality, and 3D technology.

Over 30 companies have signed on, some of which are deep in metaverse technology like Meta itself. Others include Nvidia, Unity (the creators of the popular game engine), Qualcomm, Sony, and even the web standards organization itself — the Worldwide Web Consortium (W3).

“The Forum will explore where the lack of interoperability is holding back metaverse deployment and how the work of Standards Developing Organizations (SDOs) defining and evolving needed standards may be coordinated and accelerated. Open to any organization at no cost, the Forum will focus on pragmatic, action-based projects such as implementation prototyping, hackathons, plugfests, and open-source tooling to accelerate the testing and adoption of metaverse standards, while also developing consistent terminology and deployment guidelines.”

This seems to imply that many of the future technologies created for the metaverse will include some level of interoperability between companies. That doesn’t mean the metaverse will be the Internet 2.0, but it may allow users to use certain profiles or data across metaverse platforms. In fact, this is directly stated in the press release:

“The metaverse will bring together diverse technologies, requiring a constellation of interoperability standards, created and maintained by many standards organizations,” said Neil Trevett, Khronos president. “The Metaverse Standards Forum is a unique venue for coordination between standards organizations and industry, with a mission to foster the pragmatic and timely standardization that will be essential to an open and inclusive metaverse.”

Besides the W3, other standards organizations have also joined the Forum, such as the Open AR Cloud, Spatial Web Foundation, and the Open Geospatial Consortium. This gives a lot of weight and much needed legitimacy to the organization, as the metaverse is very much a burgeoning field of technology.

Interestingly, major VR/AR players are conspicuously missing at the moment. Apple, who has already invested much in AR technology and is planning its own headset, has not yet joined the MSF. Niantic, maker of popular AR game Pokemon Go, is also missing from the roster. Protocol also points out that the Roblox Corporation, maker of the wildly successful Roblox game, has also declined to join for now.

While not considered a “metaverse” in the popular usage, Roblox in particular has been able to create an immersive 3D world where people can create entire games within it.

The exclusion of Apple, Niantic, and Roblox isn’t a forgone conclusion, however, as the MSF has just begun. The good thing is that most of the major players in the metaverse tech are agreeing to create some kind of unified standard to make development much easier. The press release named several important technology fields, including avatars, privacy and identity management, and financial transactions.

The Metaverse Standards Forum is scheduled to begin meeting next month.

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Article source: https://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/metaverse-standards-to-address-interoperability/

Metaverse tops business leaders' list of technology trends

While the metaverse is set to be an impactful technology trend over the next decade, business leaders are also keeping an eye on existing tech that's continuing to advance.

Business leaders believe the metaverse stands to be one of the most impactful technology trends for the next decade.

The metaverse is a technology that will "truly disrupt us as a brand and company," said Manoj Kumbhat, global CIO at manufacturing company Kimberly-Clark.

When thinking about engaging with younger generations, Kumbhat sees the metaverse -- a virtual world where consumers can shop, work and play -- as particularly important.

"As we think about the next generation, how do we bring consumers into the brands we're building?" he said during an MIT Sloan CIO Symposium panel called "The Most Impactful Technology Trends in the Decade Ahead."

Though other technologies including quantum computing will also have an impact over the next 10 years, Kumbhat said the metaverse and technologies enabling it, such as 5G and augmented and virtual reality, will likely be the most transformative for businesses.

Metaverse Enables Software Developers to Explore New Horizons

The metaverse is more than just a game or a virtual reality environment — it's a new way for software developers to build new applications and immersive experiences.

The emerging world of the metaverse could have a broad impact on the world as we know it.

For software developers, the metaverse represents another type of application to be built and another deployment target for source code. As with any kind of development, there are myths and misconceptions about the technology as well as challenges to getting things done.

The biggest misconception about the metaverse is that it's just another video game, according to Erik Ashby, head of product at Helpshift.