The Race to Create a World of Metaverse
On 9th December, Facebook announced the opening of Horizon Worlds, its virtual reality world of avatars, to anybody 18 and older in the U.S. and Canada.
Horizon Worlds’ wider rollout is a significant step forward for Facebook, which changed its name to Meta in October.
To represent the vision for working and playing in a virtual world, the corporate created the new moniker, a game based on the sci-fi world of the metaverse.
Of all technologies together, the metaverse will be the most immersive. It is an embodied internet where the user participates in the experience rather than merely watching it. The user will be able to perform practically anything one can think.
Users of Facebook’s Oculus virtual reality headsets can design a legless avatar to stroll around in the animated virtual environment in Horizon Worlds. They can play games and engage with the avatars of other individuals there.
Facebook’s official announcement of the metaverse’s development appears to be identical, and it might mark the beginning of the “metaverse age.”
Companies have started formulating metaverse plans. However, two essential questions remain unanswered: how the metaverse looks and who will be the participants in this new reality. The metaverse’s outline is starting to take shape, and patents in this area reveal the early adopters.
People in this futuristic view of the world escape the bleak realities of everyday life by logging into a massive virtual reality universe. They may take part in hyper-realistic 3-D adventures. Consumers of Oculus Quest or PlayStation VR will understand the exact working of these two systems, among others, currently providing users with immersive virtual reality experiences.
In addition, users are experiencing their first glimpse of augmented reality. They’re using the tools to understand their living spaces. People are modifying furnitures, equipments, and amenities, along with the simulated makeover of new clothing or jewelry looks.
The world is finally warming up to the concept of getting their heads-up displaysof functional eyewareconnected to their smart devices when it comes to accessories.
There are over 100,000 inventions with patent documents associated with each of the metaverse domains mentioned. Sony, which owns the PlayStation VR, has the most patents, followed by Microsoft that owns the Xbox system.
Facebook is ranked fifth overall, behind Samsung and Google.
Facebook has the most recent innovations in the last five years of inventions. In addition to Apple and Magic Leap, Canon, IBM, and LG are among the top ten firms, but Apple and Magic Leap may be more intriguing.
Facebook appears to be investing heavily in the technologies expected to drive the formation of the metaverse.
When Facebook bought Oculus in 2014, many people wondered what was happening with the technology other than video games. As a result, Oculus’ has served as a springboard for the company’s attempts to construct the metaverse.
Microsoft and Sony have noticed a decrease in their production for 2020 compared to the prior records. The challenge laid down by Facebook is likely to motivate them both to make more successful attempts, but for now, Facebook is the leader in recent metaverse inventions.
It’s worth examining Magic Leap and Apple before declaring Facebook the winner. While both firms were in the lowest in terms of total inventions, they both increased their number of new creations during the last five years, and by 2022, they would have virtually equaled Sony and Microsoft in terms of new inventions.
Magic Leap raised $500 million in funding on October 11, 2021 to create “strong, best-in-class augmented reality solutions for the workplace.”
In addition, Magic Leap has announced a collaboration with NVIDIA, the world’s most popular AI-augmented chip maker.
Apple has been discreetly developing its augmented reality technologies, including its Metaverse-optimized chipsets. Apple is expected to offer a metaverse-capable headset or glasses. Given their experience with consumer products, they’d be a solid bet to be the metaverse’s consumer leader while Magic Leap focuses on the corporate sector.
VR and AR technologies are already incorporated in metaverse by the companies.
Facebook has made the first significant announcement about its metaverse plans, and they’re putting up a patent portfolio to back it up. Companies such as Apple and Magic Leap are making their moves on the metaverse, and depending on the demands of their businesses, they may be a play for technologists.
The metaverse will create new opportunities that do not now exist, even for the ultrarich. Nobody can currently have a high-quality virtual experience of traveling to other solar systems, the Earth’s core, or prior eras of modern civilization. However, after a few more years of rapid VR advancement, the vast majority of humanity may be eligible to partake in these experiences.
