The potential behind the metaverse has only grown larger as the virtual and physical worlds converge. Market intelligence firm Contrive Datum Insights recently found that the global metaverse market is estimated to exceed $1.3 trillion by 2030. According to the study, this growth will be driven by newly adopted virtual economy trends, along with the rise of both crypto and online games.
In addition, a recent survey by CoinWire showed that the metaverse is likely to reshape social lifestyles. CoinWire found that 69% of respondents believe that the metaverse will eventually modify social lifestyles due to new approaches to entertainment and activities.
Artificial intelligence will make the metaverse more interactive
Cathy Hackl, author of Into the Metaverse: The Essential Guide to Business Opportunities in the Age of Web3, told Cointelegraph that the metaverse includes shared virtual experiences that occur both in virtual spaces and in the physical world:
“It’s just that the physical world side of the metaverse equation isn’t fully enabled. It will come in the next 10 years. If you take that into account, then the way we socialize will be profoundly affected by the metaverse.”
Hackl explained that technologies such as volumetric video — a technology that offers a more immersive experience by capturing three-dimensional spaces — are likely to change the way people communicate. “For example, this may help us feel more present when our loved ones are away,” she said.
Hackl added that artificial intelligence (AI) will help create more interactive metaverse environments going forward. Although the concept of artificial intelligence and the metaverse is relatively new, a few examples today show how this could happen.
For example, Sebastien Bourget, co-founder and chief operating officer of The Sandbox — a popular decentralized virtual world — told Cointelegraph that more than 1 million users played games in The Sandbox last year. Borget believes that users of The Sandbox have become familiar with using avatars to display their digital identities. He said:
“In The Sandbox, users can connect with their digital identity, make friends and have authentic feelings through these experiences. It doesn’t matter what background, age or where users are from. The Sandbox is a global digital nation.”
With this in mind, Borgett realizes that metaverse platforms have the potential to reshape social patterns of life. “Three billion people are now digital natives – there’s no way to undo that. The way to interact now is with avatars in social realms and across social media platforms.
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However that may be the case, Borget shared that Sandbox users will eventually be able to incorporate their physical movements into their digital avatars, resulting in more personalized and realistic characteristics. Borgett explained that Sandbox will partner with Kinetix, a technology startup that specializes in artificial intelligence, to bring “emotions”—animations that express emotion—to video games and virtual worlds.
Yacine Tahi, CEO of Kinetix, told Cointelegraph that emoticons will allow users to animate avatars through custom dance moves and physical interactions displayed in real life. “We have developed a unique artificial intelligence that allows users to record movements using the phone’s camera, which can then be applied to avatars,” he said.
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According to Tahi, feelings are important for recreating social interactions. “In the future, people will want avatars in the physical world to behave in certain ways in virtual worlds. For example, if someone falls during a runway show in the physical world, this can be recreated in the metaverse with avatars using emotions.”
