Five Tech Trends Fueling the Metaverse and the Potential Risks of Extended Reality

While the metaverse is still a nebulous concept, experts describe it as the inevitable evolution of the Internet, the future of social media and the convergence of physical and digital realities. Regardless of the exact definition, tech giants, including Google, Microsoft and, of course, Meta, recognize its potential and continue to invest billions of dollars in capitalizing on these emerging markets. Nevertheless, despite the innovations that will likely come out of the metaverse, those who construct these hybrid worlds must do so responsibly and ethically, ensuring that their creations do not negatively impact consumer well-being or infringe upon human rights, user privacy and security. 

Five technology trends behind the metaverse

Like how the Space Race created many new advancements, from solar panels to shock absorbers, these technology trends will undoubtedly contribute to modernizations in many other industries beyond and in close proximity to the metaverse. Technologies essential to many of the core functions of the metaverse are:

#1: VIRTUAL REALITY (VR) AND AUGMENTED REALITY (AR)

VR is more immersive, creating a 3D interactive environment; as for the latter, consumers will remember Pokémon Go, a form of AR or a digital layer over the top of the real world. Meanwhile, VR is built on creating completely brand-new virtual spaces isolated from our current real life. This endeavor is complex and costly to scale but enables new opportunities. On the contrary, AR can bring significant value-add to our real-life experiences - e.g., increasing retail sales by enabling real-time hyperspecialized recommendations at brick-and-mortar locations.

To read the full article, visit https://www.thefastmode.com/expert-opinion/29807-five-tech-trends-fueling-the-metaverse-and-the-potential-risks-of-extended-reality

Want to learn more about what Dr. Alexandra Diening has to say about the metaverse? Check out her podcast with fellow colleague Jonathan Lupo here: https://www.epam.com/insights/podcasts/designing-a-responsible-metaverse-with-dr-alexandra-diening-and-jonathan-lupo

Are you ready to take your first step into the metaverse? Learn more: https://www.epam.com/services/engineering/metaverse