1 Oct 2021 | Ori Inbar

AWE Talks: Metaverse, Shmetaverse

Augmented Reality

This week, we turn attention to the ongoing Metaverse mania. AWE Nite NYC tackled this topic to clarify some ambiguity around the M-word. Though it's futile to debate definitions at this early stage, there's still room for legitimate discourse as a thought exercise.

We go down that road with XR legend and thought leader Avi Bar-Zeev, as well as LDV Capital Partner Abby Hunter-Syed.

 

See the full video below along with TLDR (or TLDW) quick-hit takeaways.

– In all the excitement, there's no shortage of strong opinions for what the Metaverse is and isn't.
– Everyone attempting to define the M-word signals excitement and popularity (good) but also ambiguates it a bit (bad).
– Bar-Zeev asserts there’s a baseline of consistent concepts in all these definitions, but they sometimes fall short in granularity.
– For example, we should be talking more about how the metaverse can avoid the pitfalls of today’s web (e.g., privacy)
– The metaverse will likely span virtual worlds as well as real-world augmentations (a.k.a., the AR Cloud).
– In real-world contexts, Bar Zeev contends that the Metaverse is the data (think: IoT), while AR will be the interface.
– Simplified visual tools will increase visual content 100x and may usher a creative boom
– Diversity is an imperative for the success of the Metaverse if we want it t oreach everyone
– With the advancements in synthetic data and virtual humans real and fake information will be indistinguishable 
– To protect privacy corporations will need to change their business models - paying for content is good for consumers
– The Meteaverse opportunity s pans many sectors, but tools and platforms will grab the bigger pie
– Advice to startup founders - use the Metaverse term in your pitches with a grain of salt

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Further reading:
LDV Metaverse Report
Avi Bar-Zeev Blog series about the Metaverse




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