Understanding Zuckerberg's Metaverse

Understanding Zuckerberg's metaverse

In this article, I will be breaking down what the metaverse is and how it could transform how social media is used and how business is done all over the world.

A couple of weeks ago, Founder and President of Facebook Mark Zuckerberg announced that the Facebook company would now be called Meta. Mark Zuckerberg gave a presentation on what to expect with the new change in name at the company's annual conference.

He also announced that this change in brand name comes with the vision of building a new internet. One would ask, "Well, what is wrong with the internet we have now?" According to Zuckerberg, the new internet will be called the metaverse. It aims to bring a more immersive and realistic feel to using the internet. In other words, think Virtual Reality but not only for video games but for everything.

What is the metaverse?

To a layman, the metaverse might be something related to an alternate universe in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Fortunately, this is not so, as it never ends well when beings from other universes decide to visit Our Universe.

The metaverse is simply a virtual reality world that aims to bring people even closer than they are now. Virtual reality technology is not a relatively new technology. It is presently being used in Video games.

However, the Zuckerberg led Meta company aims to be able to incorporate Virtual reality technology into social media, entertainment, fashion and business.

What do you do in the metaverse?

In the metaverse, users would be able to create avatars of themselves. These Avatars can be used to interact in real-time with other users and their Avatars. Users can attend business meetings, concerts, shows or conferences in their Avatars just like they are right there in human form. This is made possible using Facebook's Oculus Virtual Reality Headsets.

This makes effective communication easier in a world where texts can easily be taken out of context. It will also enable people to access worlds that would otherwise be unavailable to them. The introduction of the metaverse, if it succeeds, changes how everything is done all over the world. Its effect on Tourism, Sports, Entertainment and Social Media will be humongous. Currently, the idea of a virtual reality world is being explored in video games like Half-Life, SuperHot and Fortnite.

Potential impacts of the metaverse

Like every new technology, the metaverse has numerous advantages but it also has its threats. One of the biggest threats to the metaverse is cyber security. Users of the metaverse could be subject to various cyber scams, identity theft and hacking. Personally, one of my concerns on the creation of the metaverse is more psychological than technological.

It makes me wonder if people would eventually become more accustomed to virtual reality than the real world. As explored in the Steven Spielberg Directed blockbuster movie "Ready Player One", people will begin to seek the virtual world as an escape from real life and the more attachments they form with the virtual world, the more detached they become from the real world.

In a world where people are on their phones and computers all the time and are far removed from the realities of life, do we need more reasons to stay online? We as humans have turned to technology not only as a means of solving technical problems but also as a means of escapism. The metaverse further provides an avenue for humans to escape their various realities.