Anybody who follows the tech scene would have surely heard about the metaverse. Virtual reality (VR) and wearable technology fans may have even believed that it is going to be the next big thing of the Internet that is coming real soon!
But alas, as we come to the close of 2024, it looks like much of it is just hype as the metaverse continues to struggle to gain traction.
Frankly, this is highly disappointing, because some VR users have already experienced the early forms of the metaverse. From a technological perspective, many of metaverse concepts are already possible even though they are not perfect yet.
The tech giants, Meta being the most notable corporation, has even invested billions of dollars into building the metaverse. Why is it then that metaverse can’t captivate the businesses and consumers?
In fact, the metaverse seems to have taken a far back seat as artificial intelligence continues to dominate the global tech scene. ChatGPT, LLMs, and even humanoid robots are hot buzzwords now since Elon Musk showed off Tesla Optimus. Even Bitcoin seems to be gaining more interest with Donald Trump returning as President for a second term.
Should we take a deeper look into what are the problems with the metaverse? After all, the grandeur concepts of the metaverse do sound fantastic. If you still believe in the growth of the metaverse, then you may even consider tapping into some opportunities.
Metaverse Original Vision
Techies envisioned the metaverse to be a variety of immersive 3D virtual spaces. If you have tried VR before, you would likely attest to the fact that our virtual interactions in a 3D immersive environment feel so much more real than using a mouse. After decades of using flat 2D screens, this is such a breath of fresh air even if the technology is far from perfect!
So, there was quite a flurry of excitement when Zuckerberg made the announcement of changing his company’s focus to the metaverse. We were sitting on the edge of our seats waiting for some big metaverse project to captivate us. The sad truth however is, most of our webinars and virtual meetings are still conducted via 2D screens…what a killjoy.
On a positive note though, the metaverse industry is not completely dead. There are a couple of metaverse gaming platforms that have managed to attract and retain a stream of users. In addition, some young users are also enjoying interacting with others on Social VR metaverse platforms.
Furthermore, the tech giant, Apple recently took a stab at spatial computing with its Apple Vision Pro. It looks like Samsung is also returning into the VR scene in 2025 with a new headset and potentially AR glasses.
Let’s take a break from reading and look back at what Mark Zuckerberg envisioned for the metaverse.
Can The Metaverse Still Be Real?
I don’t know about you, but I always dream about working from home in a digital 3D immersive environment. E.g. I’d love to work with a nice view of a waterfall or on another day, I might feel like I want to work “underwater” among pretty fishes swimming around me.
Just imagine how a futuristic VR metaverse can impact almost every aspect of your life! Your physical and digital lives will be so seamlessly intertwined together that you may no longer perceive the difference.
Meta’s vision of the VR metaverse certainly sounds exciting, albeit it might take years for it to fully materialize. Considering that many aspects of the technology is already existent, why is it that early adopters are not embracing it?
We will begin by taking a deeper look into some of the factors that are hindering the metaverse from evolving.
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The Metaverse Vision and Problem
Cumbersome VR Hardware Requirements
One of the barriers to the adoption of the metaverse is the cumbersome hardware requirements. To truly experience immersive virtual reality (VR) or augmented reality (AR), you need to put on a bulky headset device which usually weigh around 500g. The comfort level of wearing these headset devices is also far from being ideal.
We are making headways with consumer grade VR headsets like the Meta Quest. This moderately priced VR device certainly helped advance the VR market, which prompted competitors to produce their own VR devices. However, a compromise has to be made to the consumer grade devices i.e. quality of the graphics. The lower grade hardware in consumer grade VR devices are just not capable of generating graphics that are truly satisfying when the optics are placed so near to our eyes. Many VR users have commented that the blurry graphics simply kill the enjoyment of the immersive experience.
Needless to say, VR headsets that are able to produce better quality graphics come with a hefty price tag. Even if price is not an issue for you, such better VR devices usually must be tethered to a separate computer as it requires more power. A tethered VR device is also less comfortable to use as the cable tends to get in the way of body movements.
Unlike the iPhone which has revolutionized the smartphone product, we have still yet to see a VR or AR device that hordes of tech lovers will rush to get their hands on. Meta Quest VR headsets dominate in terms of sales but apart from a niche segment of gaming fans, virtual reality has yet to captivate the broader tech market. This is one of the primary reasons why metaverse is still in its infancy even after decades of technological advancement.
My Own Ideas On A Virtual Reality / Augmented Reality Device
So I came up with this idea of attaching a VR/AR device to a gaming chair because I mostly use the computer in a sit-down position, even when I am using VR. (you will never sell me one of those standing desk.)
Hence, I came up with a mock design of the gaming chair which I simply called ‘Blazing AR Gaming Chair’. Below is a 3D visualization of what the chair might look like. What do you think? Perhaps the market is ripe to form a new breed of gamers that can easily switch between 2D and XR gaming??
I figured by taking the weight of the device off the user’s head, it will certainly make it more comfortable to wear for long periods of time. The visor can be adjusted closer or further away from the user’s face to enjoy the prefered degree of immersiveness. I especially like the idea of not sweating into a face pad, which means this chair is more hygenic for sharing.
When designing this chair, it got me thinking too. Why is it that we have yet to come up with powered gaming chair?
Drop a DM in my LinkedIn if you too have some interesting ideas for the VR/AR/metaverse/ market.
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The Metaverse Vision and Problem
Lack Of Compelling Content In Metaverse
When you think about the current offerings of the metaverse, what are you thinking of? Is it something along the lines of ‘nothing much’?
You see, Web 2.0 and social media spread very quickly around the world because of its ubiquitous availability of user generated contents. In fact, without these massive throngs of users going online, the e-commerce industry would certainly never have boomed.
Social media became hugely successful because there is a humongous variety of contents that appeal to users worldwide. This exponential growth is fueled by our basic human needs to be curious and social.
Social media contents can also easily generated because even the least tech-savvy user can easily create photos and videos with a smartphone camera. Even editing contents is a breeze with various user-friendly tools like Canva and we even have AI to help us these days.
Creating Metaverse Contents Is Much More Complex
In the metaverse realm, 3D graphics play a prominent role and creating such content comes with a high learning curve. Even the technology behind 3D scanners is far from being accurate. As a result, it is thus not realistic to expect many people to learn how to create 3D graphics.
As of this moment, much of the current content around the metaverse are mainly geared towards gaming and entertainment. This narrow focus also fails to attract a broader audience interested in other uses. e.g. education, professional collaborations, e-commerce, etc.
Therefore, it is rather idealistic to build the metaverse with a label as the next evolution of the Internet. It is just not realistic to expect huge volumes of content creators to come onto the metaverse on the scale of what we have around social media platforms.
As such, the metaverse must serve another purpose that is different from what current social media platforms are offering. Let’s explore this notion on the next page…
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The Metaverse Vision and Problem
The Need To Redefine The Metaverse: It is Not The Next Evolution of The Internet
The metaverse concept has failed to captivate the interest of the world as the next evolution of the Internet. We should then go back to the drawing board to give more thought into how we define the metaverse concept. Perhaps only then can we identify some real entrepreneurial opportunities within this space.
Just because I am a crypto enthusiast, I would like to use the cryptocurrency market as a reference. Brian Kelly, the author of ‘The Bitcoin Big Bang – How Alternative Currencies Are About To Change the world’ said in his book that in business school, the first thing a young capitalist is taught is that there are three ways to gain market share: (1) make a superior product, (2) sell an existing product for cheaper, or (3) do both.
The VR Metaverse VS Web 2.0
Let’s put this “superiority” and “cheaper” test to the VR metaverse. Can it stack up against Web 2.0 with all its social media consumption and e-commerce trading?
Let’s say we want more Internet users to regard VR metaverse as more superior than social media. This would require the metaverse to generate higher quality contents than what we find on social media and e-commerce platforms. Higher quality contents could mean anything that is entertaining, education or informational. This feat will prove to be a massive challenge since we already mentioned that 3D graphics is more difficult to create.
If we desire for VR metaverse to scale-up, it must also provide avenues where users can generate income. One other reason why Web 2.0 is attractive is because there are various platforms that enable users to earn money. (E.g. ads monetization, online selling, product sponsorship, freelancing, etc.)
In terms of cheaper, VR metaverse is definitely cannot be regarded as a free product as potential users will need to purchase a VR device. This perception of ‘extra cost’ would not apply to users who already own a VR headset though. Nonetheless, the metaverse must offer compelling reasons to attract VR users to access the metaverse apart from VR gaming.
As you can in the chart below, VR gaming has been steadily gaining traction and this trend indicates that VR metaverse does holds great potential.
The Metaverse Should Enhance User Experience (UX)
Great Content and Positive User Experience Are Key Drivers To Attract People Into The VR Metaverse.
Therefore, the metaverse should enhance the user experience (UX) of using Web 2.0. It should not seek to replace Web 2.0 or draw users away from Web 2.0.
Here in actually lies an opportunity to expand the metaverse as the decentralized Web 3.0 have yet to truly capture the interest of general Internet users. In my opinion, it is easier to get started in metaverse via a VR headset than learning how to use some of the Web 3.0 tools.
We can also learn from other 3D innovations that had come and gone in recent years. For example, watching 3D movies in a big theatre managed to form a niche market in the entertainment industry over the years.
A side note though, 3D technology somehow finds it difficult to transition well into the home environment as we have seen with 3D TV and 3D gaming. Nonetheless, the fact that 3D TV was once a sellable product prove that consumers are interested in immersive 3D contents.
Conclusion
While the metaverse faces significant challenges from different perspectives, its potential remains vast. Entrepreneurs should not ignore this domain just because things seem to be on the quiet side lately.
There is always a possibility that sudden technological innovations can dramatically change market trends. For example, the term AI suddenly became a hot buzzword when ChatGPT was released to the public. But artificial intelligence is actually not a new technology. AI has been subtlety integrated into e-commerce and social media algorithms for years.
But the fact remains that the sudden surge of interest around AI only came after ChatGPT. Likewise, someone may very well suddenly introduce an amazing metaverse project or product that will accelerate the industry. Therefore, if you look at the metaverse with a positive outlook, it is certainly not dying. On the contrary, it is just in a state of incubation, waiting for the right moment for a market boost.
In the business world, many experts still believe in the ‘first mover advantage’, so you can be quite sure that there are investors who have already put a stake in the metaverse and are experimenting with its potentials so they can quickly launch their products at the opportune time.
Given that the metaverse could rise from the ashes at any time, are you ready then to take your entrepreneurial journey into the metaverse? From here, you might be interested to continue reading my article about metaverse business opportunities.
