The push for the metaverse continues to intensify, and with companies like
$META,
$U,
$NVDA,
$NET, and
$RBLX being dubbed as "metaverse stocks," their latest earnings suggest that maybe the metaverse isn't the best thing to invest in right now, after all. In looking at the short term, it's easy to see how the metaverse isn't fully taken seriously.
While Zuck has one view of how the metaverse should/will develop, there's another group of people advocating for a much different approach to co-creating the metaverse: interoperability.
Interoperability is a prerequisite to building interconnected experiences that provide new opportunities for economic, social, and cultural change. These immersive experiences will enhance events, entertainment, social spaces, and working environments. As individuals and collectives across the globe begin to build, experiment with, and participate in increasingly engaging experiences, it will become progressively more important to remove barriers to creating these experiences. We must ensure a composable, scalable ecosystem of interconnected and interoperating products, services, and knowledge to augment and transcend physical events, environments, and experiences. I think what I love most about interoperability is that it internalizes "it takes a village." This is in no way a slight to Meta because I really do want to see what it builds, but I think ultimately an interoperable metaverse will win the hearts and minds of people because they won't be stuck with assets they can only use in one place. When I think about the metaverse—or anything, for that matter—my mind immediately goes to what is the true value of being a part of a metaverse. As we all know, most things are a distraction if they're not helping us accomplish the personal goals that we've set for ourselves.
My concern over the metaverse—whether it's interoperable or not—is if it's making humanity marginally better or marginally not. Maybe one of the reasons why none of these ideas have gotten off of the ground in a major way yet is because they still aren't solving a problem; social media has largely solved the connectivity issue already. I think the best bet to get a metaverse off the ground is to start in a particular niche, solve a problem that only that tech can help you solve, and then scale up and work with other niches to build out an interoperable metaverse. It's not as sexy as saying you're building "the metaverse of all metaverses" but starting small can lead to major things, just think about how you were created.
“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few." Matthew 7:13-14 ESV
With this in mind, my eyes will be set on the projects that take the narrow gate, not the wide one. It'll be interesting to see which metaverse projects become the most sticky, and what niche they begin in.
Where will your eyes be looking?