This Week in the Metaverse for November 7, 2022

0 00:00:10,000 --> 00:00:38,000 Script: November 7, 2022 1 00:00:39,000 --> 00:01:07,000 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 November 7th. Let’s see what happened with metaverse stuff this week. 2 00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:36,000 Last week I made the little side comment that just because Meta is getting hammered for its attempts at the metaverse doesn’t mean the metaverse itself isn’t going to happen. It’s just that it might not be controlled by those Facebook people. In fact, there’s kind of a war on for what the metaverse is going to be, and it appears to pit the original proposition of an open and user controlled virtual space against platforms owned and controlled by the tech giants. The Open Metaverse Alliance is now open for Web3 builders to join. It is promoting an open, interoperable, blockchain-powered metaverse. Working groups are working on things like standards between metaverse platforms and exploring legal protections in Web3. Batis Samadian of the metaverse commerce platform Space said, “We share the same belief of the importance that the metaverse becomes truly user owned.” The group has some prominent members and will be governed by a decentralized autonomous organization. But every Luke has to have his Darth Vader. Every Iron Man must have his Thanos. Every Dora the Explorer has to have her Swiper. There’s another group called the Metaverse Standards Forum made up of 35 tech firms like Meta, Adobe, and Microsoft. They also say they want an interoperable metaverse, but the Open Metaverse Alliance doubts it. None of their member companies were even invited to join the MSF. Ah reminds me of the parties when I was 13. And the reaction has been pretty much, “Fine, we didn’t want to join your stupid alliance anyway.” The founder of the real estate game Upland, Dirk Lueth, said, “Everything that touches blockchain, and everything that touches tokenization and smart contracts, we didn’t see represented in the MSF.” 3 00:01:37,000 --> 00:02:05,000 A new poll has come out to tell you what you think. This one is from Grayscale, and it found almost 80% think the United States should provide clearer crypto regulations. Just over half trust crypto well enough. That’s not too far away from the 84% who say they trust stocks and bonds. Whether they trust it or not, the vast majority thinks that answer to all solution everywhere, the government, should step in with clear rules for crypto trading. And don’t you think government bureaucrats aren’t already rubbing their hands together and thinking about it. There’s a bill being jerked around right now that would give the Commodity Futures Trading Commission new authority on digital commodities. I was just telling the wife the other day, “I don’t think government has enough authority.” Ironically, more people trust crypto than trust politicians and government. 53% see crypto as the "future of finance" so that’s why they feel somebody should do something. In fact, many believe crypto can’t even take off until government rules legitimize it so more Americans will get into it. About one-fifth of people surveyed already own crypto, while 6% said they owned NFTs. 4 00:02:06,000 --> 00:02:34,000 Here's a question, just what’s holding the metaverse back? Well, it’s safe to say there are technologies required that just aren’t ready for prime time. And Esther Shein at Techtarget.com reported on seven they think need to get moving. 1. AI. According to BCG, only 10% of companies report significant AI benefits after deployment. But it’s needed to make digital humans more lifelike. 2. Internet of things. It’s more than your refrigerator having a heart-to-heart talk with your Roomba. It’s called a pillar of the metaverse infrastructure that would allow virtual spaces to interact with the real world. 3. Extended reality. AR, VR and MR with digital displays that sync better with body movements. 4. Brain-computer interfaces. Which don’t worry about that because it’s still mostly science fiction. 5. 3D modeling and reconstruction so things look real in the metaverse. 6. Spatial and edge computing. Edge computing you need for quick response time to user actions that mimic reality. And 7. Blockchain to secure digital content and data in the metaverse. So go into one of those 7 areas and you’ll get rich. 5 00:02:35,000 --> 00:03:03,000 Remember going to mall to look at pre-teen members of the opposite sex, drink Orange Julius and play video games? Of course you don’t. I’m ancient and you’re not. But Mexico has introduced its first shopping mall type in the metaverse. It’s Island Shopping Mall and there are around 80 brands in it, yes, including Victoria’s Secret. The goal is to get up to over 800 brands. Unlike the real malls, in which that air brushed license plate kiosk would lose its spot if someone else wanted to pay more, there is no limit to Mexico’s metaverse mall. And when you buy something there you earn tokens that could get you coupon codes and discounts. Why is this happening and why is it happening in Mexico? Because they’ve adopted the hell out of web3 and crypto. They’ve got the largest metaverse marketplace in Latin America. And they love crypto because the Mexican economy has been pounded by inflation, so citizens have leaned into crypto to expand their earning opportunities. And over 13,000 Mexican investors have poured their money into metaverse and crypto companies. 6 00:03:04,000 --> 00:03:32,000 Wouldn’t it be nice to move through a virtual or AR environment without vomiting profusely? Yes, I think we would all appreciate that. Researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University have engineered a VR remote collaboration system that lets users on Segways share not only what they see but also the feeling of acceleration as they move. Here’s how it works, according to Eurasia Review. The riders are set up with cameras and accelerometers that can feed their sensations to a remote user sitting in a modified wheelchair wearing a VR headset. After making several test subjects green in the gills we’re sure, surveys finally showed significant reduction in motion sickness. And that means better experiences for remote collaboration activities are possible. You can meet up in that metaverse amusement park and it won’t feel so weird. Or, warehouse workers on personal mobility devices can share what they’re seeing and doing with remote executives. Just a reminder, traditionally, VR motion sickness happens because you’re seeing motion through your headset, but your body is calling BS that it’s really happening, so it gives you headaches and nausea. The new solution gets around this by also sharing the movement as well as the sights. 7 00:03:33,000 --> 00:04:01,000 I get it, not everybody is as rich as me and drives a gold-plated Hyundai Elantra. But for those of you who are, you might be regular readers of the Robb Report. That magazine and website’s Dana Givens tells us about this luxury phone-maker called Vertu. Okay sure it shut down in 2017, but it’s back. And it’s back because they’ve come up with a new phone that’s just right for you Web3 people. In fact, they come right out and say this new phone, called the Metavertu, is the “world’s first Web3 phone.” What makes it Web3? It’s Qualcomm processor lets it easily switch between your standard Android operating system to Web3 mode. And when it’s in that mode, it can run its own blockchain node and you can make NFTs with the push of just one button. As easy as taking a selfie of you against a wall with butterfly wings. There’s also a built-in privacy chip so no one can steal anything out of your digital wallet. But wait, there’s more. It also supports encrypted instant messaging and decentralized apps, so you can bathe in the glow of extended privacy. Vertu CEO Gary Chan said, “We want to reinvent the smartphone to de-complicate Web3.” Beyond the Web3 features, the things on this phone are nuts. The screen is sapphire glass with 1080p resolution. The triple camera snaps 64-megapixel photos. A heat dissipation system keeps it cool. And it charges in 20 minutes. Anyway, if you’re ready to buy it, the price ranges from $3,600 to $41,500, depending on if you want Himalaya Alligator leather with gold and diamonds. I’m not kidding. 8 00:04:02,000 --> 00:04:30,000 That’s all we have for you this week. If you want to keep listening, just subscribe to the show, rate it, review it, and we’ll be back next week. 9 00:04:31,000 --> 00:04:34,000 In this short episode you’ll learn: 10 00:04:35,000 --> 00:04:38,000 About the two groups fighting for what the metaverse is eventually going to be 11 00:04:39,000 --> 00:04:42,000 How many Americans want the government to regulate crypto 12 00:04:43,000 --> 00:04:46,000 The seven technologies needed to make the metaverse really happen 13 00:04:47,000 --> 00:04:50,000 Which country just opened a metaverse mega mall 14 00:04:51,000 --> 00:04:54,000 How to share VR experiences without throwing up 15 00:04:55,000 --> 00:05:00,000 About the first Web3 smartphone