Since Mark Zuckerberg announced Facebook's name change to Meta, the concept of the metaverse has gained visibility and been widely discussed. But what will the metaverse be, and what impact will it have on our lives?
The term metaverse first appeared in 1992 in a science fiction book called "Snow Crash", written by Neal Stephenson. In this story, people use the metaverse to escape from a harsh reality of deprivation, suffering and authoritarianism. Through this "parallel universe", it was possible to experience another, more positive reality. In one passage of the book, the author describes what this new environment would be like, informing readers that the story's protagonist, Hiro, "isn't actually there. He's in a computer-generated universe that the computer draws on his glasses and pumps into his headphones. In slang, this imaginary place is known as the metaverse".
Almost 30 years after Hiro's experience, the metaverse is beginning to appear as a possibility for us. The idea of accessing a kind of parallel world through immersion is nothing new: tools such as virtual reality already exist and allow us to live this experience. The gaming universe is a forerunner of this concept and has been taking us to other worlds for years: "Second Life", from 2003, was based on a virtual and three-dimensional environment simulating the real and social life of human beings through avatars. "The Sims", in a simpler way, is also based on the same concept. And what about "Fortnite", which allows users to take part in music festivals, visit stores, store and interact with people?
But what makes the metaverse a promise of something greater? Although it is still at a conceptual stage, there are factors that indicate great potential for this new world. The first is the focus of major technology companies on its creation. Facebook's name change makes it clear that Zuckerberg's company is interested: USD 500 Mn has already been invested in the project. Microsoft, Roblox and Epic Games are examples of other giants who are also working on their plans. The metaverse is also gaining support from other important stakeholders: Seoul, the capital of South Korea, will be the first city to allow access to public services and cultural events via the metaverse. The city has already invested more than USD 3 Mn in the project.
In addition to supporters, the metaverse's potential is also based on the relevance it generates for its users. In the Seoul example, the entire city administration will be in this environment, such as education and citizen services. A virtual version of the city hall will allow citizens to meet avatars of the authorities to make inquiries or solve problems. Currently this is only possible by physically visiting government buildings.
Integration between platforms also promises to be a differentiator, allowing users to reproduce all aspects of their lives in the virtual world. Your avatar will be able to watch a movie in the cinema (virtual, of course), meet friends to chat, buy clothes and accessories to wear in the metaverse, have a meeting or a doctor's appointment. You can even collect and sell works of art through NFTs. And there are already real estate agents showing interest in selling "land" in this new world.
While there is great expectation about the potential of the metaverse, there are still many doubts about its implementation and viability. One of the great assets, integration between systems and technologies, also depends on the creation of compatible platforms so that the user can navigate between them: the same avatar will have to move through different environments, just as we do in the real world. He could visit Seoul City Hall while using WhatsApp, and then go to a concert hall to see his favorite band perform. Without integration between the different environments, the metaverse experience won't happen.
In addition, technologies need to be democratized. Virtual reality devices are still an expensive tool, but they will be fundamental to the metaverse, as will improving graphics quality. At the same time, the arrival of 5G will also help with the necessary processing speed.
We still don't know if Hiro's trip to a parallel world in "Snow Crash" will become our reality. But if the expectations of those involved in building the metaverse are confirmed, in the near future this article could have been written by my avatar, published in makers' virtual environment, and read and shared by readers' avatars!
