The Metaverse: state of play, questions, and a virtual look to the future…
11/13/2023
Around 100 people – including leading international researchers and experts from industry – recently gathered at the Paris-La Defense campus for a conference on the metaverse and virtual worlds. Amidst the hype and media attention surrounding this topic, this was an opportunity to look at the current state of play, to find out more about the latest industry developments, and to delve into some of the key questions and trends that researchers are studying. From the complexity of ownership to the new technologies that shape virtual worlds, or the ways businesses can create value through social interactions. These were just some of the topics that were tackled in the morning session before industry experts took the floor to share their experiences and insights.
Thorsten HENNIG-THURAU (University of Münster) described the metaverse as a virtual environment in which people, as avatars, act and communicate with each other in real time. Russell W. BELK (Schulich School of Business, York University) was invited to address the complex issue of (virtual) ownership and possessions in the metaverse. Carlos FLAVIAN (University of Zaragoza) opened his presentation on the new technologies that may shape our future by stressing that the metaverse was still very much in its infancy (the “metaverse 1.0”) and that there were more questions than answers about what the metaverse will be. Philipp RAUSCHNABEL (Universität der Bundeswehr München) started his presentation by stressing that he believes the future will be hybrid, combining the best elements of physical (offline) and digital (online) worlds.