Matthew Ball - A Manual to The Metaverse

Key Takeaways

• The closest representation of the metaverse currently comes from the Roblox platform, which has hundreds of millions of monthly users, billions of hours of engagement, and over 75 million different virtual worlds, all tightly integrated with one another.
• The second closest representation is the Epic Games ecosystem, specifically Fortnite Creative Mode, which will be overhauled later this year with Unreal-based editing, allowing for a consumer-facing low or no code platform that can be supplemented by professional capabilities.
• The Epic Games ecosystem also has a large footprint in fields such as next generation games, automotive platforms, and architecture engineering construction, and has the potential to be even larger than Roblox with the right connective tissue in place.
• The metaverse is being positioned as the fourth era of computing and networking, following the mainframe, personal computer, and mobile and cloud eras.
• The metaverse seems to be starting in the consumer leisure space, which is unusual compared to the preceding three waves of computing and networking which began in enterprise or government.
• The constraints that have defined the development of 3D engines in the past have been processing power, broadband speeds, and bandwidth. However, recent advancements in technology have allowed for the maturation and sophistication of game engines and real-time rendering, making them more applicable in fields such as automotive and architecture engineering construction.
• The companies that have expertise in 3D engines and real-time rendering tend to come from the gaming industry, such as Unity and Unreal, which have become the dominant engines in the field.
• Interoperability is important for content creation, user rights, and a thriving economy of the internet.
• Examples of interoperability in the real world include the use of common standards such as USD, English, and the metric system, as well as the intermodal shipping container.
• Interoperability is not managed by a central for-profit body, but it is important for reducing friction in transactions and increasing the utility of investments and purchases.
• The metaverse should not be thought of as a replacement for the internet or current devices, but rather as a "quasi successor" that will not replace everything we do today.
• Matthew brings up the example of Second Life, which had a peak of a few million monthly active users, but notes that current platforms like Roblox have surpassed that with 55 million daily active users and 250 million monthly active users. Gen Y games more than X, Gen Z, more than Y, Gen A more than Z. Nearly everyone born today is a gamer. That's 140 million new gamers per year.

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