Mark Zuckerberg has recently been in the news announcing a host of developments all geared towards shifting the Facebook brand away from social media and towards the ‘metaverse’. The company’s name is set to be changed to reflect this transition, and Zuckerberg has also hired around 10,000 new employees to work on the metaverse project.
These announcements make Facebook the latest of many international companies that all want to get ahead of the VR revolution. But it’s not just big business that can benefit from investment in virtual reality technology; the metaverse will represent a paradigm shift in technology and will have implications for all businesses and entrepreneurs.
What is the metaverse?
The Metaverse aims to be a self-contained, real time alternative reality that can be accessed via VR interfaces. At the moment the metaverse is embryonic but with VR market growth estimated to be bigger than all other media in the near future, and with the launch of Metaverse, development is likely to be rapid.
Unlike the VR video games we’ve had so far, action in the metaverse won’t simply stop when users sign out can’t sign out, it will be a living, breathing world running 24/7. The metaverse isn’t just for fun, either; many people think that, soon enough, business transactions and developments will take place in the metaverse, too.
This article from The Verge gives some further details on how the metaverse will likely look.
Welcome to the VR revolution
VR, or virtual reality, is essential to the metaverse. The metaverse isn’t intended to be something that you just explore via your computer screen; instead, VR headsets and goggles will integrate the metaverse with real life. AR, or Augmented Reality, can allow you to access the metaverse while you’re still ‘present’ in the real world, opening up a huge host of possibilities for everything from trying on outfits to participating in work meetings.
In the metaverse, you can expect to be able to:
• Try on clothes or test out furniture in your home before buying it
• Visit virtual locations before planning large projects such as construction or event projects
• Explore virtual venues including hotels and resorts before you book your stay
The metaverse will also take Zoom meetings to the next level, by allowing businesses and organisations to meet and collaborate virtually, from anywhere in the world.
This is why the metaverse matters for business. The reality is, the metaverse promises limitless potential to transform the way we work and live and businesses that get ahead of this change now, and start considering the economic opportunities, will be primed for success.
How you can integrate VR into your business
The accelerated growth of VR and the metaverse in coming years promises to be a truly disruptive technological leap. True entrepreneurship is about adapting to constantly changing environments, and the metaverse is exactly that. How will services we take for granted in regular reality be adapted for VR? What equipment will people need as they begin their journeys into the metaverse? What kind of goods and services will people in the metaverse need? These questions and more should be asked to spark the creative thinking that will generate the first generation of metaverse businesses.
There are mindset changes you can work on now to get in front of the VR revolution.
The leap into the metaverse isn’t going to happen overnight. For the moment, it’s important for businesses across the world to keep exploring the latest VR options, including true VR and AR integrations, as a way to both collaborate with colleagues and connect with customers. With the metaverse getting closer to reality everyday however, now is the time to start thinking disruptively too, about this disruptive technology.
