This Week in the Metaverse for December 19, 2022

0 00:00:10,000 --> 00:00:41,000 Script: December 19, 2022 1 00:00:42,000 --> 00:01:13,000 Hi, it’s Mike Stiles and this is This Week in the Metaverse, your weekly newscast that keeps you up to date on everything that isn’t real, and yet is. It’s December 19th. Let’s find out what happened around the metaverse this week. 2 00:01:14,000 --> 00:01:45,000 In the 70’s, people used to walk up to each other and say, “Give me some skin, man.” In the year 2022 if you say that to someone, they might actually give you literal skin. Sound icky? No ickier than a lot of technology advancements. Michael Irving writes in New Atlas that Engineers at the City University of Hong Kong have now developed a thin, wearable, electronic skin that provides tactile feedback to VR users. They call it WeTac. And if you’re as pale as I am, you hope it comes in tan. This is a step beyond existing clunky wearables attached to a tangle of wires. It’s a rubbery hydrogel that sticks to the palm and front of the fingers, connected via Bluetooth to a patch on the forearm. There’s a total of 32 electrodes that electric currents can be sent through to create tactile sensations and simulate a range of experiences, from playing the piano to I guess slapping Chris Rock like the Fresh Prince did. I’m only half kidding because WeTac says it can also create uncomfortable sensations for negative feedback. Which any dog with an electronic dog collar will tell you is a real incentivizer. 3 00:01:46,000 --> 00:02:17,000 Stanford University did a study because they’re a college and they get money to do that and learned your choice of virtual environments and avatars can actually promote positive psychological outcomes. Dean Takahashi of GamesBeat writes that apparently being able to change your appearance and environment has a nice effect on your social interactions in the metaverse. This would have certainly changed my senior prom experience. In short, when participants were in beautiful “outdoor” VR environments it was more restorative and enjoyable than virtual “indoor” environments. Testing environments ranged from tightly packed train cars and enclosed arenas to endless fields and infinite horizons. When they were in the fake outside, there was better group cohesion, pleasure, arousal, presence, and enjoyment. There’s no telling how wonderful it might feel for participants to experience the real outdoors. The study also found that when represented by avatars that looked like themselves, participants gestured and postured kind of in sync with each other. But when represented as generic avatars, they found the experience entertainingly freeing. The possible lesson being what avatar is best to choose might depend on what it is you’re doing in the metaverse. 4 00:02:18,000 --> 00:02:49,000 Increasingly, it looks like one thing more and more people want to use the metaverse for is travel. Or at least making travel plans. Cryptopolitan’s Jai Hamid reports a survey by Booking.com shows Millennials and Gen Z are particularly stoked about getting a virtual taste of where they might go for real. 43% said unequivocally they’re going to use VR to guide their travel decisions. More than 35% are open to the idea. But it is for planning, not replacement. 60% said metaverse travel can’t compare to the real thing. Anyone who’s watched “Locked Up Abroad” knows that. And the travel space has a lot of room to grow in terms of metaverse applications. For instance, if you do strap on WeTac’s second skin, you might someday be able to feel a sandy beach or ocean breeze. But for now, the value for both travelers and hospitality providers is that travelers can “practice” their visit in the metaverse so that when they actually get to where they’re going, they’ll know what they’re doing and basically look less like idiots. 5 00:02:50,000 --> 00:03:21,000 If you were wondering what the Bored Ape Yacht Club guys are into these days, the answer is the metaverse. Daniel Van Boom writes extensively about them in CNET. You probably know the Bored Ape Yacht Club monkey from NFT fame, but because the price point to get into their NFTs is so crazy high, they’re looking to the metaverse to create a more achievable entry point. And they’re going to do that through a crypto-integrated game they hope will increase the number of Web3 adopters. That might be a challenge for Yuga Labs, that’s the name of the company. Crypto is not having its finest moment where trust and credibility is concerned. But their big project is Otherside, Yuga's concept of the metaverse that will actually work on web browsers — PC and mobile. It’ll be a big fantasy world with a storyline but also a platform you just like to hang out in. The difference maker is supposed to be that items you buy or make will be treated like digital property, owned as NFTs that you can sell to earn crypto. But even though it's a Web3 game, you won't need crypto or NFTs to play, which should help get people in the door. And they might need that because traditionally, gamers have not liked attempts to integrate NFTs into games. 6 00:03:22,000 --> 00:03:53,000 Forbes’ Rhett Power has some advice for businesses who are thinking about getting into the metaverse. In fact, he has three tips. 1. Try to quantify your business' tangible benefits and costs. Given your goal for this venture, will it be worth it? And make sure you can set trackable KPIs to measure progress along the way to make sure it’s working toward the goal. 2. Test different metaverse tech applications. NFTs are probably the first thing that will come to mind, but your business might lend itself to other experiences. Like creating a digital twin or for education. Is there an advantage to offering customers, prospects, stakeholders, and employees 3D, real-time experiences? And 3. Check some of your risk aversion at the door. It’s easy in this environment to operate conservatively, mostly out of fear. But that stops you from exploring the newest things that can be done if they were just adequately explored. Bloomberg says the metaverse market could be worth $800 billion by 2024. Gartner says by 2026, about 25% of humans will spend an hour a day in the metaverse. You may not want your business left too far behind at the train station when all this takes off. 7 00:03:54,000 --> 00:04:09,000 Like the New Year’s Eve song says, “May old acquaintance be forgot, and I was so drunk last night I don’t even remember who this new acquaintance is.” But it’s the time of year for predictions and predictions about the metaverse and Web3 are no different. These come from MediaPost and Jaie Genadt, co-founder of Flox. More business experimenting with virtual events, like Metaverse Fashion Week. More use of digital twins of products and facilities, which we just talked about. Everything that can be digitized will be. The uses that will probably succeed include gaming, virtual land ownership, and specific interactions in virtual environments. Things that will struggle include decentralized exchanges, blockchain-based gaming projects, and projects that rely on token sales. In two to three years, most virtual meetings and events may move permanently from 2D to the metaverse. And in 2023 we’ll see a lot of metaverse and web3 adoption in the corporate world, because it can allow business to be done remotely, efficiently, and intelligently. Intelligent business, my favorite oxymoron. 8 00:04:10,000 --> 00:04:25,000 That’s all we have for you this week. Subscribe to the show then go that extra step and actually listen to them, and we’ll be back next week. 9 00:04:26,000 --> 00:04:29,000 In this short episode you’ll learn: 10 00:04:30,000 --> 00:04:33,000 How you might be getting a second skin for your virtual life. 11 00:04:34,000 --> 00:04:37,000 How different virtual environments affect your mood. 12 00:04:38,000 --> 00:04:41,000 Who wants to use the metaverse for travel, and how. 13 00:04:42,000 --> 00:04:45,000 What the Bored Ape Yacht Club guys have planned for the metaverse. 14 00:04:46,000 --> 00:04:49,000 Three bits of advice for businesses thinking about getting into the metaverse. 15 00:04:50,000 --> 00:05:00,000 And some New Year’s predictions for the metaverse and Web3.