The Metaverse And Work
Many experts view a virtual workspace as the future of the workplace. It's not hard to see given how quickly remote work is being adopted. There can be no discussion about the future of the office work environment without mentioning the metaverse. Meta has made the metaverse a point of discussion among consumers and tech enthusiasts. A lot of people argue that the metaverse already exists. Whereas, some believe that it's what's going to lead us into the new era of Web 3.0.
It's not easy to predict how things are going to play out when it comes to the metaverse and how it fits into our lives. However, there is no doubt that it's bound to bring a lot of meaningful changes to the way people work and collaborate. It may be difficult for you to start imagining yourself throwing on a virtual reality device and going to work in a digital world, but that future is not far off.
What Exactly Is The Metaverse?
The Metaverse is a dynamic concept that hasn't fully taken its final form. There is a simple explanation of the metaverse that anyone can understand. This concept is that the metaverse describes a virtual world that incorporates both virtual realities and augmented reality in the same space. Because it has a mixed reality approach, it's more immersive and interactive than each one individually. Within this mixed reality universe, you would have a digital avatar that represents you and be able to interact with the real world through digital replicas of real-life physical objects.
The original idea of the metaverse dates back to 1992 when it was discussed in the popular dystopian novel called, "Snow Crash." This is when the actual term was coined and it was ironically about warning people of the dangers of digital drugs. However, it's since inspired a sort of digital adaptation that a lot of businesses are pursuing.
You can also find a similar concept in Ready Player One, a popular film adaptation of a book that has human beings interacting in a digital world much like the one that Facebook/Meta is planning for. In the movie, you will find people working, playing, and interacting with one another using avatars in a digital space.
How It's Bound To Impact The Workplace:
1. The Virtual Workplace
As this concept of the metaverse continues to take shape and mature as the technologies behind it advance, it's expected to increase the appealing nature of a virtual workplace. Right now, the technology is still in the infancy stage where it's not as convenient as it could be. However, in the future, there will be even more immersive workspaces that will bring all of the benefits of a physical office to the digital world. You will be able to join meeting rooms, access break rooms, and even socialize with your coworkers in virtual space just like you would in the real world.
This will help a lot of companies save a lot of money as they wouldn't need to maintain a physical office presence. This alone can cost a lot and they wouldn't need to deal with the traditional expenses that come with maintaining a conventional office either. For employees, it gives them more freedom to live where they want and helps them save time from having to deal with long and tedious commutes. They can also collaborate with coworkers without having to meet up with one another.
This transition isn't expected to be quick. It's expected to be nearly a decade long, if not more. During this period of transition, a lot of companies will likely find it easier to adopt a flexible work environment where employees can choose whether or not they want to take part or a hybrid environment where they will get a little bit of both.
The beauty of a virtual workplace is the fact that there are no limitations. The limitations come down to your imagination. You can create activity-based rooms to suit the specific needs of employees and everything can be optimized to create the most productive environment for every department.
2. Joining As Your Avatar
Something that a lot of people might not get about the metaverse is how everything could feel real if you are only a mere digital replica of yourself. This can be true with the current state of the two technologies that the metaverse is dependent upon. However, as the technology matures, avatars and virtual environments are only expected to become more and more realistic. The metaverse will end up providing a visual experience that you cannot get elsewhere. Developers continue to make strides in this space and are looking to seamlessly use both AR and VR to create a much more realistic environment that blends reality with the digital space.
The graphics nowadays have become more realistic than ever before. If you've ever seen the latest work from some of the game demos produced with the new Unreal Engine 5, you likely know how life-like character models and levels have become. As a result, you can tell we are on the cusp of having the graphical power to blur the lines between what's real and what isn't.
The latest Unreal Engine 5 created metahuman in-game characters through comprehensive digital scanning. It's not hard to see a future where basic webcams can be used to scan not only your face but your body to build out a digital replica of yourself in the new metaverse. These webcams can continually be used to monitor your movements and pick up changes in expression, gestures, and more. This can make living in the new metaverse more lifelike than ever before and reduce any lost expression or emotion you don't get with being in the same room as a coworker.
What's so important to remember when it comes to using your imagination is that these types of interpersonal interactions aren't entirely possible to recreate, however. Humans will always want the true human-to-human connections and the new interactions the metaverse will bring won't be a complete substitute for it.
3. Rethinking Space
One of the things to note about the digital world is that space doesn't have any limits. Because of this, the relative concept that something is large or small isn't truly going to exist. You could find yourself entering a room that is as tiny as a single pixel on the screen, but when you enter it, you end up in a palace when it's zoomed in.
As a result, the uninspiring cubicles of the past will be forgotten. These dull and cold cubicles will be completely replaced with a customized and inspiring workplace for every employee. An employer will be able to customize these spaces to make them more appealing and inspiring for their workforce.
The new metaverse will likely have its own rules attached to it. This means it will have its own digital currency, methods of payment, privacy regulations, and more. Because of this, it's a matter of discussion as to whether or not it will cost something to build out virtual space.
Back To Reality
A lot of the tech leaders like Microsoft and Meta are banking on the fact that the metaverse will be bigger than the Internet in the future. Even newcomers like Gather and Huddle are looking to pour their finite resources into the new concept of a virtual world. Because of the interest, it means the metaverse won't be a concept of a single company. Rather, it will be created by various companies that will yield their influence on how things get built.
It won't be known for quite some time how things will play out. Only when things mature will the true impact of the new virtual world be seen. There is a clear expectation that this transition will take place within the next 10 years or so. However, it could come even quicker than expected due to technological advancements and changes occurring globally.
Because of this, hybrid and flexible work models are likely to continue to be the norm. A lot of companies have already made their transition to a hybrid workplace model to maximize savings and leverage skilled employees outside of their geographical location.
The metaverse is expected to bring a lot of good things to the business world. However, it's never going to be a true substitute for the human to human interactions. Having a physical office presence will always have its unique benefits that the virtual world cannot recreate. Why is it important to continue to have some type of physical presence? Because the true reality is still the only thing that's real and even the most realistic-looking metaverse won't change that.
