What an exciting time to be alive. I remember when VR mobile apps first came about. It was tough to imagine a fully-fledged, always-on VR experience coming in my lifetime, but technology being what it is, here it is knocking at the door.
A recent keynote speech from Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg in which he announced Facebook’s rebranding to Meta is bringing the future of virtual reality to almost every aspect of our lives (in a way that only Facebook can). It is the first step in developing a fully integrated online experience, something Zuckerberg is calling the Metaverse.
But what is the Metaverse, what does it have to do with augmented and virtual reality apps? Why is it important to your business?
While much of what the Metaverse will actually be, how it will look and feel, is still up for speculation, but by this stage we all have a fairly solid understanding of what VR and AR is capable of, and what kind of digital world it can inspire.
Much like has been in movies like ‘The Matrix’ and ‘Ready Player One’, or on a lighter side, how the internet is depicted in ‘Futurama’, the Metaverse will aim to create an online experience that fully immerses users into a digital world when browsing the internet.
To do this, it will be highly reliant on the same tech used to engage with AR and VR mobile apps.
The possibilities here are endless and exciting, especially as VR devices become more portable and functional, soon we will have headsets no heavier or more cumbersome than glasses, and that’s when the tech should really take off.
So, according to Zuckerberg and his grand plans, we will all be blending our physical world with a virtual one, seemingly at every waking hour of our day.
This is even more speculative, but imagine what it could do with a technology like Elon Musk’s Neurolink.
The point is that our physical world is soon to become a lot more integrated, and even if Facebook (ahem… I mean Meta) doesn’t manage to pull it off, someone eventually will.
So, AR and VR are going to become a commonplace part of daily life as we wear the tech with no more inconvenience than a wristwatch or sunglasses.
But what does that mean?
Imagine walking past a restaurant and seeing its specials for the day front and centre in your vision.
Getting a heads-up display that gives you directions to a shop.
Video calls with people as though they were in your living room.
Gaming that goes with you and makes itself a part of the physical world.
These things are all already possible, but not widespread. The Metaverse is highly likely to bring them to the forefront of everyday life.
This can have a fairly big impact on your business, how it interacts with its customers, and how it advertises itself, regardless of the business you own.
If there is one thing we have come to rely on with Facebook or any other massive tech company for that matter, its that data-driven marketing is at the core of their profitability, and often enough, that of their clients.
If there is a way to turn an interesting technology into a channel for marketing, Facebook will certainly do it.
The Metaverse, will likely be no different…
This will present your business with new and exciting ways to engage with your clients, if you use the tech behind VR and AR mobile apps with a bit of applied creativity.
While Meta and the Metaverse are still a little way off from being a mainstay, it is never too soon to start preparing for it and being one of the first to take advantage of it when it is fledged.
If you would like to know more about our offers on development services for augmented and virtual reality apps, be sure to visit the Applord website today.
