In the words of Miguel Ángel Calero, Web3 & AI strategist at Izertis, the metaverse concept refers to a “virtual universe in which people can interact and experiment through technology in a similar way to how they do in the real world. ” and explains that this concept “is being developed through virtual, augmented and extended reality technologies, and also virtual, augmented and extended assets, economies, sensory or creative capabilities in real time through other emerging technologies such as blockchain, IoT, 5G or generative artificial intelligence.”
Everyone has heard of the Metaverse, something like a virtual world that simulates the real world, but it is true that behind this simple idea lies a much more complex set of technologies.
For Alejandro Domínguez, Senior Director of Digital at LLYC, since Mark Zuckerberg transformed Facebook into META, “he gave a new dimension to the concept” and adds, “he is convinced that in a period of five to ten years we will no longer “browse ” on the Internet as we did at the beginning with our computers; neither will we “look” at the Internet through the screen of our mobile phones. What we will do is literally “live” on the Internet.”
Although it is true, although it seems that everyone assumes that they know what the Metaverse is, its use and operation entails a series of responsibilities and deeper knowledge on the subject. Thus, Piergiacomo Pollonio, CFO of Mondo TV Studios, explains that the risk “as various scholars and experts in technology and digital innovation point out, is that the deep and true meaning of the Metaverse concept is misrepresented: not simply a virtual world (which already exists ) where, wearing glasses as an interface, one can interact through avatars and where to buy digital products, among other things, but rather a new Internet model, completely different from the web we know today.”
To this day, the Metaverse is still in full development and in continuous improvements and innovations. But it points out ways to become something fundamental in our lives. At least, so Alejandro Domínguez believes, “in theory, the metaverse could improve our lives in various ways. For example, it could allow us to interact and collaborate in ways never before possible, whether it’s working together on projects, playing team games, or simply socializing with friends and family around the world. In addition, the metaverse could also offer new educational and entertainment opportunities, allowing us to learn and experience things in ways that would be more complicated in “real” life.
For her part, Yaiza Rubio, Chief Metaverse Officer of Telefónica, is still cautious about how the Metaverse will affect our future lives, “the reality is that nobody knows how important the metaverse will be 30 years from now. What we do know is that the metaverse proposes a new way of relating more closely in a virtual environment” and he says, “for some time now, we have been hearing that the metaverse will be the next evolution of the internet and that its impact will be equaled to the impact that the birth of the internet had in its day.”
From Izertis, Miguel Ángel Calero expresses his doubts about the implementation process of this technology, “it is difficult to predict exactly when the metaverse will become commonplace in our lives, since it depends on many factors, such as the widespread adoption of the necessary technology , acceptance by society, and the development of platforms and applications that allow people to interact in the metaverse in an easy and accessible way. However, it is possible that in the near future we will see an increase in the popularity of the metaverse and the number of people using it as a way to interact and experience things that would otherwise be impossible or expensive to do in real life. ”
“We are, as Zuckerberg acknowledges, years away from moving massively into the Metaverse: Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality devices still have very little definition, and it is estimated that until 2030 they will not be indistinguishable from reality. That is to say, we will not have a realistic sensation of being submerged in a world identical to the real one. But that moment will arrive, and when it arrives it will be quite an experience”, affirms the Senior Director of Digital at LLYC, Alejandro Domínguez.
Neither does Piergiacomo Pollonio believe he is sure of how the Metaverse will evolve in the near future, “we believe that enough prudence is still needed in forecasting the future of the Metaverse, since it is under development and, above all, still in the creation phase. It is quite likely that it is the next great revolution” and highlights the importance of keeping abreast of everything that surrounds this virtual world, “so that you can be there when the time is right.”
Along these lines, about the uncertainty of the virtual future of Zuckerberg’s new creation, from Prosegur they explain that the reality is that, “despite the firm commitment to the metaverse that large technology companies are making, such as Meta, Google or Telefónica, there are still We are in the early stages of developing this idea of a future immersive environment. This implies that we are still far from knowing many of its uses and applications, especially taking into account the enormous possibilities that the Metaverse houses in sectors such as health, industry or retail.”
And they also explain that 2022 “has been the first great impulse for the development of the metaverse. According to the consulting firm McKinsey, this year 120 billion dollars have been allocated to the construction of its technological infrastructure and that by 2030 that figure will have multiplied.”