What is the Metaverse and how it connects to the Blockchain

Do not call it new virtual reality, but evolution of the web

The word Metaverse began to bounce around the web when Mark Zuckerberg announced on October 28 that Facebook will change its name to Meta. Since then we read everywhere around us about Metaverse and the many initiatives that big brands are creating every day.

In the coming years it could become dominant, to the point of defining the new space that it will occupy as an embodied internet in which the user will be present and no longer just an observer. Many people, however, are not clear about what the Metaverse is. We have decided to explain in a simple way this next evolutionary step of the Internet.

What is the Metaverse?

We can define it as a parallel universe, always online, made up of experiences, movies, concerts, meetings, games and everything you can imagine, but in a digital form. It represents the transition from the real world to a virtual one. This reality is not a real change or even a novelty, but an evolution of the technology we currently know: we are in web 3.0

How do I enter the Metaverse?

To make it easier, imagine sitting at home on your sofa and through a VR (Virtual Reality) device you can meet friends, new people or visit unknown places. You could play football, watch a movie or take a walk in another city (virtual, of course!). There is no real physical contact but the interaction is real and takes place through your avatar; just like in the homonymous film by James Cameron.

Who invented the Metaverse?

The term was coined by Neal Stephenson in his 1992 science fiction novel “Snow crash,” but the concept could be traced back to William Gibson’s 1984 book “Neuromancer.” 

To be honest, we have already seen many metaverses. Who does not remember, for example, the famous “Second Life”? It came to important numbers, with more than a million presences connected very day, but despite this phenomenon, the network has almost disappeared; so why should it be any different now? 

The right answer is that today the time is ripe, technology has made huge strides and the key to a true immersive experience is precisely the set of technologies we have today. Augmented Reality, Artificial Intelligence, 5G, IoT and  the blockchain.

Metaverse and Blockchain

There are many questions about the limits and obstacles to overcome. 

Who will handle the metaverse? Will we have only one or will we see dozens? If there are many, what will push competing companies to agree with each other to make the various virtual worlds interconnected and interoperable? Who will ensure data security?

The answer is simple. There is no Metaverse without Blockchain, because the latter acts on the decentralization of data. Before the use of Blockchain, NFTs and Cryptocurrencies everything was stored in a single database, with obvious limitations.

Today, however, the goal is to create interoperable, secure, fast and decentralized metaverses. So, the blockchain is today the most suitable technology, because it allows, for example, to keep on a decentralized register the characteristics of our avatar and our digital assets (cars, clothes, real estate, digital works of art), using them in any metaverse we decide to attend.

We could say that the blockchain-based metaverse does not unite the real and virtual world. It creates a totally alternative one, equipped with rules and 3D environments very similar to the real ones. Here you can imagine monetizing the experience, following dynamics similar to those of the real world, while remaining in a fantasy context and creating a new and evasive digital experience.

The road is still to be traced, but we can’t wait to start this journey in web 3.0 and see where it will take us. Let’s enjoy the trip!