Facebook made an announcement that has many people wondering. Mark Zuckerberg claims that they will hire 10,000 employees in Europe within the next 5 years to run its “metaverse.”
This peculiar concept, which originated in a science fiction novel from the early 1990s, has become one of the technology world’s hot topics in recent times. It is of interest both to Mark Zuckerberg’s Facebook, and to other tech giants like Microsoft, Nvidia, and Epic Games, the makers of the blockbuster video game Fortnite.
A Virtual Universe
Matthew Ball, an author and investor, managed to provide a framework that has since become generally recognized. He explained that the metaverse must be a virtual and persistent depiction of our world; that it must not stop and develop in perfect sync, that it must have no user cap, and that it must have its own currency, among other qualities.
- The term “metaverse” originated from author Neal Stephenson for his sci-fi book Snow Crash in 1992. It has since been used in a number of other works, notably Ready Player One.
- It will be an unlimited number of interlinked digital ecosystems in which users can connect, work, and play: from conferences, virtual concerts, and businesses.
The concept isn’t unique or exclusive to Facebook; firms like Epic Games, which created the Fortnite game, and Roblox were among the first to introduce the metaverse to the general public. A corporation cannot construct the metaverse as a single brand. According to Facebook, the metaverse, like the web, will remain even if Facebook does not.
There is indeed a great challenge before this becomes a reality. Zuckerberg estimates that developing interactive services for the metaverse will take approximately 10 to 15 years.
Announcing @Meta — the Facebook company’s new name. Meta is helping to build the metaverse, a place where we’ll play and connect in 3D. Welcome to the next chapter of social connection. pic.twitter.com/ywSJPLsCoD
— Meta (@Meta) October 28, 2021
Bringing Metaverse To Life
In an interview with The Verge, Facebook’s CEO described his ambition for the metaverse and how he plans to make it happen. One of the company’s main investments is Horizon Workrooms, a space where different individuals can meet to work telematically and execute project that is very similar to those in the physical realm using VR. Two essential aspects of the metaverse collide in this virtual world:
- Avatar Creation: A notion that distinguishes these experiences from previous social networks.
- The requirement for a virtual reality viewer, which is likely the most important device of this digital world.
A few of Zuckerberg’s company’s long-term movements begin to be recognized with concepts like Horizon Workrooms. For instance, the $ 2 billion it spent in 2014 to buy Oculus VR, the world’s largest maker of VR headsets, now makes more justification. Indeed, for many years, this behemoth has been experimenting with the concept of social virtual reality.
The metaverse, according to Mark Zuckerberg, is much more than a successor. Indeed, it’s simple to comprehend why Facebook’s founder appears to be so preoccupied with this concept. According to Bloomberg, this new sector represents an $800 billion opportunity by 2024.
Legal Challenges
- Facebook faces legal, as well as technological problems. The rise in appeal of the metaverse concept has coincided with a period of crisis for the social networks, not only because of a recent global fall in its operations but also because of allegations that it does not protect its users’ data or promotes toxicity.
- Critics of Facebook’s Metaverse worry if the revelation is simply an effort to deflect the spotlight away from the company’s current issues, which include antitrust probes, accusations from former workers, and concerns about how it handles misinformation.
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