Metaverse 101: Everything You Need to Know About the Metaverse.

This blog will give you a complete overview of everything you need to know about the Metaverse.

It is going to be a long but insightful read. Grab some popcorn and start learning :)

What is the Metaverse?

How do we access the Metaverse?

Current Internet Vs the Metaverse?

Who is building the Metaverse?

Why do we need the Metaverse?

Real-world use cases of the Metaverse?

Why Games & AR are the entry point to Metaverse?

Where are we now in the race to build the Metaverse?

What are some harmful side effects of the Metaverse?

What Is the Metaverse?

The term Metaverse was first coined in a science-fiction book called Snow Crash, written by Neal Stephenson back in 1992, where he described the Metaverse as a virtual space where users could work, play, and hang out in the form of an avatar.

So What Does the Word Metaverse Mean?

In original Greek:

Meta → Beyond or after

Verse → a universe or space

So "Metaverse", in the true literal sense, would mean: "A space situated beyond the (normal) reality". In this case, we can call a space beyond our reality, the Metaverse.

The Metaverse is a version of the internet that is always:

Real-time → User is present in the moment(Live).
3D → Users can interact with the content.
Immersive → User can experience the content in-depth.
Activity oriented → User can move, feel and explore inside the immersive environment.

The Multiverse of Metaverse.

Metaverse is only one (like there is only one internet), but there are going to be many virtual worlds inside this Metaverse (like there are different websites on the internet).

These virtual worlds can be created and customized according to the user’s wish. There can be a virtual world like Hogwarts or a virtual spacecraft that is traveling across galaxies.

You can experience anything you want in an immersive 3D virtual world; these are the places where our fantasies come true.

In a nutshell, the Metaverse is a space situated beyond our reality that you access using the VR/AR/MR headsets, where the user is present in the moment in the form of an avatar, and this avatar can interact, visualize and experience the content (3D assets) in depth, overall an immersive 3D presentation of the internet.

How Do We Access the Metaverse?

Let’s understand VR, AR, and MR and how they all are related to XR(Extended Reality).

VR (Virtual Reality) headset:

To access these virtual worlds, you’ll need a VR (Virtual Reality) headset, like the Meta quest. The VR name itself indicates that it is a gadget that helps you get immersed in virtual worlds like The SandBox, Horizon World, Rec Room, etc.

AR (Augmented Reality) headset:

AR (Augmented Reality) is a technology that helps us overlap digital objects over the real world rather than completely immersing us in a virtual world. Instagram/Snapchat filters and Pokémon Go are perfect examples of AR. You can consider AR as the partial implementation of the Metaverse.

All this time, Metaverse has been here in the form of Augmented Reality, and we weren't even aware of it.

MR (Mixed Reality) Is a Space Between VR and AR:

VR allows you to interact and control the 3D assets whereas AR allows you to experience them in the real world. The MR headsets come into the picture when you want to interact, experience, as well as control virtual objects in the real world.

MR brings a balance between the real and virtual worlds, and it consists of the most exciting real-world use cases.

Extended Reality:

All of the above technologies VR, AR, and MR belong under one umbrella term called Extended reality, which is a mixture of all three.

In a nutshell, AR, VR, and MR are technological terms describing the hardware products that are used to access the Metaverse.

Current Internet vs the Metaverse?

The 2D Internet

The Current internet is a network of billions of computers, millions of servers, and other electronic devices. Once online, internet users can consume and share information, communicate with each other, view and interact with websites, and buy and sell goods and services.

In other words, our current internet is all about information transactions on a 2D interface.

What do we usually do on the current Internet?

Play games.
Search information on google.
Browse social media and YouTube.
Text/E-mail on social media platforms.
Uploading and downloading data from the servers.

In all of the above cases, we are transacting and consuming information in 2D via our smartphones & Laptops/computers.

First, you give some input (like searching a keyword on google) to access the information, and then you get a response back in 2D (getting back the result from Google on your device). Be it texting your friend on Instagram or watching a video on YouTube, the process remains the same.

In all cases, you are transacting information, either you’re creating it or consuming it. Except for gaming none of the above-given activities are highly immersive.

The 3D Internet

The Metaverse is about activities. It improves the internet rather than competing with it. With the help of technologies like virtual reality (VR), and augmented reality (AR), users can navigate or experience a virtual world that mirrors parts of the actual world.

This means that the user is present in the moment of interaction, almost as if they are in the scene themselves. It's like playing a game in first-person perspective (FPP) mode instead of third-person perspective (TPP).

When you’re inside a Metaverse, you’re completely immersed in a 3D world, that expects you to perform activities to navigate/move.

In the meantime, you’re experiencing the content in 3D, interacting with it rather than just looking at it (like you do with your smartphones and computers).

In a nutshell, the current internet is something that people "browse." But, to a degree, people can "live" in the metaverse.

Who Is Building the Metaverse?

The Metaverse is being built on 3 different layers by companies and startups:

Infrastructure layer
Platform layer
Application layer

Infrastructure layer → This layer is the building block of the Metaverse. As the name implies, this layer focuses on building the infrastructure for the Metaverse and it mainly consists of -

VR/AR/MR headsets → To access the Metaverse, you need headsets. These headsets are being built by various companies like Meta’s Quest, Sony’s PSVR, and SnapChat’s AR spectacles.

GPU (Graphic processing unit) → The Metaverse is completely 3D which means, it requires a lot of graphic power. This is where companies like Nvidia and AMD come into the frame. They are developing graphic cards like GeForce and Radeon to help your computer build/render 3D assets smoothly.

5G → In the Metaverse, the user is always present at the moment which means there is seamless connectivity between the user’s headset and the virtual world’s server. To ensure that connectivity never gets interrupted, there’s a need for a faster internet network like 5G.

Cloud Storage → Since Metaverse is always live and 3D, it produces a lot of data that is stored at a place from where it can be downloaded and uploaded at any given time. This is where cloud providers like AWS (Amazon web services) and Microsoft Azure come into the picture.
Platform layer → What does the word platform mean? The place where you get on or off trains at a railway station (using a pre-defined resource to create/access a new resource). In the same way, the platform layer of the Metaverse means building a system that would allow others to build on top of it.

Similar to how IDEs (integrated development) environment assists us in building applications for the current internet, there are going to be specific platforms that will help you to build the Metaverse applications.

The Unity and UnReal gaming engines are two of the most popular platforms to build 3D assets.

Virtual worlds like The Sandbox, Horizon World and Decentraland are also a type of platform which allows you to create content on top of it. The sole motive of the platform layer is to provide an interface for others to build.

Application layer → Once you’ve access to all these virtual worlds and IDEs, how are you going to utilize them for real-world use cases? The application layer focuses on building solutions on top of the platform layer.

Take, for instance, a scenario where a manager wants to conduct an online meeting with his employees. The manager can customize the virtual world using code/no-code tools to make it suitable for carrying out the meeting.

Or if an artist wants to organize a concert in the Metaverse, the artist can customize the virtual world according to his needs.

The Sole motive of the application layer is to build real-world use cases of the Metaverse. It is the application layer where all the consumers of the Metaverse are found.

In a nutshell, the infrastructure majorly deals with hardware requirements, and the platform layer focuses on providing an interface for the consumers to build upon; both are dominated by big companies who are investing big bucks to build the pre-requisite of the Metaverse but, it is the application layer where the real innovation lies, this is where startups and consumers will iterate new solutions and try to figure out real-world use cases of the Metaverse.

Why Do We Need the Metaverse?

One of the most important questions is: do we need the Metaverse?

We are happy with our smartphones and laptops/computer performing all the day-to-day tasks. Then, why is there a need for something like Metaverse to pitch in and replace these devices with AR/VR headsets?

What Drove the Growth of Internet Users?

In recent years, especially post-2010, we saw a sudden boost in the growth of internet users.

The main factors driving this growth were the attractive UI (User Interface - means by which the user and a computer system interact), smooth UX (user experience - the overall experience of a person using a product such as a website or a computer application, especially in terms of how easy or pleasing it is to use.), and handheld devices (smartphones).

E-commerce became more attractive, ed-tech videos became more engaging, and social media got more appealing, all of this because of —UI/UX and smartphones, which helped us to go from 1.8B active Internet users in 2010 to 5B active users in 2020.

Companies like Facebook and Amazon switched their business model from a web-first approach to a mobile-first approach. Which led to the creation of a super successful mobile app family including Facebook, Messenger, WhatsApp, and Instagram.

How Metaverse and VR/AR Headsets Notch Up the Internet Game.

If UI and UX, in the form of 2D, can drive such insane growth, imagine what kind of growth 3D UI/UX would lead to.

3D UI/UX can enhance user engagement in playing games, browsing social media, e-commerce, or attending a meeting by allowing them to be present in the moment rather than just scrolling or staring at a 2D screen.

User engagement and experience are key to driving the growth of any product/service.

Big brands understand this better than anybody else. Companies like Amazon, Snapchat, and Meta, use AR-based virtual try-on for apparel items to boost their sales.

Accenture, one of the biggest software companies, now prefers 3D meetings over 2D zoom meetings! All this is because 3D meetings result in better user engagement and significantly boost employee productivity, owing to the interactivity of the meeting.

And when it comes to hardware we’re in the process of evolving from handheld devices to wearable tech. We’ve been stuck with 2D screens for decades.

We had:

Wired telephone in the 90s
Handheld devices in the 2000s and 2010s
Now, we’re in a slow transition to adapt wearable gadgets like smartwatches and AR/VR headsets.

In a nutshell, 3D UI/UX and VR/AR headsets are the inevitable steps of the evolution of the internet. We need the Metaverse to enhance our user experience from 2D screens to 3D virtual worlds.

Real-World Use Cases of the Metaverse?

Since virtual worlds can be customized according to the requirements of the users, many Industries can benefit from the Metaverse:

Education → Watching tutorials/videos often get boring as they’re unable to engage our attention. Learning a concept in 3D makes learning fun, engaging, and easy.

Construction → It is very hard to demonstrate the structure of a construction site on a 2D screen. Because 2D screens were never meant to give you an overview of 3D objects. But in the Metaverse, you could analyze every step of construction in 3D and bring more clarity about the project.

Military and Space → It is impossible to train astronauts and soldiers for every place they’re expected to visit. But using 3D virtual simulations astronauts can get an overview of space or the surface of any planet and a soldier can get an overview of any place on earth.

Clothing → Apparel brands can open their stores in virtual worlds like The Sandbox. Where users could go and try shirts, jeans, shoes, or any wearable item on their photorealistic avatars (an avatar that is a complete replica of you in the virtual world). If it looks good on your photorealistic avatar, then you can place orders via these virtual stores.

Social Media → Among all the industries, social media platforms can gain the most out of the Metaverse. Imagine yourself inside a virtual world where all your Facebook friends and Instagram followers are present. You can catch up with them directly with your photorealistic avatars. You can play games together, hang out, and can perform almost all the activities that you can do in the real world.

In a nutshell, these are just a few industries to name; almost industries can somehow benefit from the Metaverse in the same way they benefit from the current Internet.

Why Gaming and AR Are the Entry Point to the Metaverse

Why Gaming?

Satya Nadella (CEO of Microsoft), believes gaming is the entry point to the Metaverse. But why?

Because shared social experiences are the key to driving engagement.

A simple question, when are you most immersed when using a smartphone?

Browsing social media - A little bit immersed & attentive.
Watch video content - Moderately immersed & attentive.
Playing games - Highly immersed & attentive.

Most social networks focus on only one main activity: sharing & consuming content.

Games allow you to engage in actual activities with your friends and they’re good at telling stories, offering an escape.

Games require you to concentrate continuously. When playing games, you pay attention to every single detail on the screen, and eventually, you end up escaping reality and getting immersed in the virtual world.

Thus, that’s the whole point of Metaverse, immersing you completely in the virtual space, that’s what makes the games the ideal way to enter the Metaverse.

Fun fact: In January 2022, Microsoft even acquired Activision Blizzard (creators of Call of Duty) for a whopping $69B to build their gaming infrastructure for the Metaverse.

Why Augmented Reality?

At this point, VR headsets are bulky in size, and they’re not ideal for everyday usage; AR glasses have very limited features. So, they’re suitable for experiments but not meant for mass adoption at this point.

But there are billions of smartphones out there, and each one of these smartphones can render digital objects in the real world. Instagram, Snapchat filters, and Pokémon Go are the best examples.

AR can be considered as the partial implementation of the Metaverse, where you’re interacting with 3D digital objects in the real world.

In a nutshell, games immerse you in the digital world without the need for AR/VR headsets and AR filter helps you to engage with 3D objects just by using your smartphone.

Where Are We Now in the Race to Build the Metaverse?

Okay, now the most important question is when will the Metaverse replace our current Internet?

The first thing we must understand is that we are in the early stage of the Metaverse. Think of the Metaverse of the present day as the Internet of the early 90s.

When the websites were not attractive, web pages were not much responsive, user experience was not so good, hardware was expensive and ugly, and non-techies were skeptical about it and they were calling it a fad, but in reality, the internet had huge potential, and the tech enthusiasts were experimenting and building solution on the Internet.

History doesn't repeat itself but it rhymes.

The Metaverse is going through a similar phase where virtual worlds are not very attractive and VR/AR headsets are heavy and expensive. Non-tech people are skeptical about it, investors want to make quick bucks out of it, and techies are excited to build solutions in the Metaverse.

In a nutshell, it would take at least a decade for the Metaverse to unfold and take its ultimate form as the successor of the Internet.

What Are Some of the Harmful Side Effects of the Metaverse?

We have talked a lot about the benefits of the Metaverse. Let’s get a brief overview of the harmful effects of the Metaverse.

First, and the most important thing that we must understand, is that nothing can replace the experience of human contact. No matter how much attractive a virtual space is, how many benefits it offers, or how productive it is for you, the virtual worlds can never replace the feeling of being present in the real world and experiencing human contact.

VR/AR headsets are harmful to our eyes in the long run.

VR disconnects us from the real world, this can lead to mental health problems.

Users would feel nauseous at the beginning of using VR/AR headsets.

Too much reliance on technology is not ideal.

In a nutshell, every technology has its pros and cons, where pros are leveraged and cons are eliminated by establishing good practices. As end-user, it is our responsibility to use technology as a tool to carry out specific tasks and not confuse it with the way of living life.

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