The Metaverse Has a Lot in Common With a Supermarket From 1787

TL;DR

• Instead of totally new and immersive 3D virtual experiences, we need more tools/experiences that fit in with our day-to-day lives to make the metaverse work.

• Magic Leap just announced it is looking to focus more on real-world application of the space, and that companies in this field in general will need to do so for growth. 

• They believe that the true capabilities of ‘the metaverse’ will come to life when digital and physical are intertwined (and we agree!).

Full Story

Kevin, our intern, made a joke the other day that the metaverse reminds him of a supermarket built in 1787 Pennsylvania. 

Which sounds confusing, but kind of made sense once he explained it…

In 1787, attempting to create a supermarket would have been a pretty dumb idea. The automated mass-production of ‘food and other stuff’ wasn’t really a thing yet, so there wouldn’t be much to fill the shelves with.

This is basically the metaverse right now. 

His argument is that the metaverse is a compelling idea, but we need more technological developments to ‘get the shelves fully stocked, and customers in the door.’

Or better yet, instead of totally new and immersive 3D virtual experiences, we need more tools/experiences that fit in with our day-to-day lives.

Think: AR headsets that let you create a 100 ft virtual screen to work on, or allow you to digitally try on clothes before purchasing them online…

Good news for Kevin: it looks like some big names in the AR/VR space are in agreement with him on this one. 

Magic Leap just announced it is looking to focus more on real-world application of the space, and that companies in this field in general will need to do so for growth. 

They believe that the true capabilities of ‘the metaverse’ will come to life when digital and physical are intertwined. 

(And we agree!).