in Articles, Artificial Intelligence |

Generative AI paves the way forward of mainstream metaverses

All big tech companies except Apple are laying off 10.000s of staff; most pivot away from VR/AR developments to Generative AI (GenAI) like ChatGPT. However, GenAI is a key ingredient for mainstream metaverses, which I expect to be built on augmented — rather than virtual — reality.

Key points in this post

  • Big tech companies shifting focus from VR/AR projects to generative AI
  • Generative AI is actually a key ingredient for (m)any mainstream metaverse
  • These metaverses are expected to be visually mainly built on AR tech
  • The (r)evolution towards GenAI is driven by the industry’s need to create new experiences for the “Next Big Thing” as new cash cow or power house
  • Tech companies changing direction should not be seen as a setback for the metaverse but as a sign of the industry’s evolution towards AR in combination with generative AI and the potential for new and exciting possibilities
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Metaverses: AI & AR

How wondrous is the metaverse, a realm of endless possibility
A place where you can shape and share your own reality
Perhaps you have already glimpsed some of its wonders
Powerful tools that let you interact and immerse yourself in others
You may have met AI, the mind that’ll guide the metaverse

Ever curious about the secrets of AI in the metaverse?
Artificial Intelligence is the skill of machines to learn and think
Some examples of AI in the metaverse are chatbots, avatars and agents
They can help, amuse but also trick you with their intelligence
Reality has changed forever, because of AI

MetaMarch Insights: 16 metaverses in the MetaPlayers Quadrant (MPQ2023Q1)

The metaverse is the next frontier of digital experiences, where people can interact, create, play and explore in immersive digital worlds. But not all metaverses are created equal. Some are more open and decentralized. Others are more focused on gaming or socializing. And some are more accessible and scalable. How can we make sense of this diversity and complexity? That’s where the MetaPlayer Quadrant comes in.

The MetaPlayer Quadrant (MPQ) is my recent framework to help you understand and navigate the metaverse landscape. It divides the metaverse into four categories, based on two dimensions: product versus platform, and (de)centralization.

In this very first implementation of the MPQ framework, we’ll dive deeper into the 16 metaverses that our researchers uncovered in the first quarter of this year. Hence, the MQP-2023Q1 edition or more popularly known as MetaMarch 2023.

Before we explore each one in more detail, a quick recap about the two axes.

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Introducing the MetaPlayers Quadrant: a game-changing framework for metaverses

Are you curious about the metaverse and how to navigate its diverse and evolving (virtual) landscape? If so, you might want to check out this launch post that introduces the MetaPlayers Quadrant or MPQ for short: a simple but powerful framework that can help you understand, compare and plot distinct types of metaverse experiences.

The MetaPlayers Quadrant (MPQ) framework by Mike van Zandwijk

Key points in this launch post

  • The MPQ is based on two dimensions: (de)centralization on one axis and productizing versus “platformization” on the other axis
  • Platformization measures the degree of openness and modularity that a metaverse offers to its creators and users. A metaverse product is more like its own (often true 3D) planet while a platform is more like a (2.5D) galaxy.
  • Centralization measures the degree of control and ownership that the creators and users of a metaverse have over its content, rules and economy.
  • By combining these two dimensions, there are four quadrants that represent various kinds of metaverse experiences:
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Alive and (busy) kicking!

Good day my friends,

You might be wondering when my (bi)weekly shares and monthly articles are coming again. Just a quick update that I am currently focused on a particular assignment which involves tons of research. Most are client specific so I cannot and won’t share these findings. Some are more generic yet jaw dropping like The Mukaab, a real-world Metaverse City if you will.

I will share these generic findings in an article around April 2023 due to client projects and personal time off for holiday and my kids’ birthdays.

Want more sooner? Feel free to follow or connect with me on LinkedIn where I am already sharing many developments by (re)posting and liking interesting news daily.

Have a wonderful Meta March!

Happy New Metayear!

Happy New Metayear to my friends, fans and followers,

As we say goodbye to the old year and welcome in the new, I take a brief moment to reflect on some exciting developments and opportunities that await us in the year ahead.

I’m optimistic about the future and believe that with joint effort and determination, we can create a better world for ourselves and those around us. And with the public availability of ChatGPT, I’m even more excited about the potential for AI to enhance our lives and the multitudes of metaverses.

Here are a few things we are looking forward to in the coming “Metayear”

  1. More wearable companions to smartphones (Modular Mobility)
  2. Apple releasing their very first metaverse device running on xrOS
  3. A shift towards more AR products (a first sign of Reversed Virtuality)

So here’s to a happy, healthy, and successful new year to all! May this new Metayear bring you joy, prosperity, and all that you wish for in any metaverse.

Wishing you all the best for 2023,
MetaMike van Zandwijk

PS. My family and I are enjoying the Christmas holidays so little to no posts from me this week. I will also switch to a more weekly in-depth article than short posts every other day.

The Triple Paradigm Metashift

Three megatrends are imminent. Each trend triggers a next paradigm metashift: a fundamental change of how we think about the metaverse and see our world. Literally.

Megatrends leading to Triple Paradigm Metashift

  • The first megatrend is the relocation of key functions in all-in-one mobile phones to mobile hubs with a wide range of wearable companions:
    • Wireless earplugs replaced your phone’s mic and speakers (speech)
    • Smartwatches take over phone controls (touch and gestures)
    • Smart (AR) eyewear might soon substitute your phone’s screen (sight)
  • This current megatrend, Modular Mobility, enables us to superimpose anything digital into our real-world easily with small-factor AR overlays
  • The rapid growth of Augmented Reality in the real-world instead of VR in simulated worlds, leads to the second megatrend: Reverse Virtuality
  • Reverse Virtuality (RV) is the new mindset that the metaverse is not about merely an online 3D world for VR gear but about the real-world application of truly Mixed Reality for our AR-first physical world.
  • These megatrends bring both big benefits and challenges that phase us to the third megatrend, ultimately leading to Societal Metamorphosis
    • First phase: Digital Disorder, bad actors abusing disruptive meta-tech
    • Next phase: Digital Renaissance, tech-for-good tackling global crises
    • Final phase: Digital Singularity, irrevocable transformation of society
  • The good news? A Digital Singularity would be so much better for human civilization than a Technological Singularity. The bad? It’ll be tough first.

Our world is on the brink of another technological revolution.

As we stand atop the steep slope of the S-Curve Pattern of Innovation, we can’t help but wonder what the future holds. Following the (mobile) internet revolution with the rise of the web and smartphones, it’s difficult to predict what lies ahead.

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The Metaverse Mall: the Future of Retail?

Imagine the metaverse became a reality: the lines of the digital and the physical are completely blurred with virtual objects superimposed onto our real-world. How would you picture a Metaverse Mall of the 2030s in a real-world scenario?

Key insights from this (sci-fi short) story

  • A metaverse mall is not necessarily an online 3D shopping center
  • Such a Meta Mall is primarily a physical, social “Smart Space”
  • A blend of digital personal companions and physical public sensors
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Apple Reality OS (rOS) renamed to Apple xrOS for its possibly delayed mixed reality headset

Apple Reality Operating System (or rOS for short) just seemed to be rebranded to Apple xrOS. Analysts took it as a hint that Apple was close to launching its mixed or eXtended Reality (XR) device as planned for early 2023. New reports indicate that headset shipment is delayed to the second half of 2023 due to software-related issues.

Key insights in this post

  • Reports indicate that Apple rebranded Reality OS (rOS) to xrOS
  • Shipment of the mixed reality device seems delayed to second half of 2023
  • Expected volume less than 500.000 units in 2023 at a price of ~3.000 USD
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