Metaverse Statistics and Facts for Average People: Do You Need to Care?
The Metaverse is one of the most anticipated internet inventions of this decade. It combines VR, AR, and even a possible brain-computer interface. For us, this is a new way of interacting with technology. Let’s learn some fun facts about the Metaverse as a glimpse into the future.
Table of Contents
Where Did the Metaverse Concept Come From?
Although the modern world is investing vast amounts of money and very talented minds in creating the ideal Metaverse, have you ever thought about how it began?
About 30 years ago, the Metaverse was introduced by writer Neal Stephenson in his science fiction novel “Snow Crash.” In his 1992 book, the Metaverse is a VR space where people use digital avatars to explore the virtual world to escape the physical world of injustice.
Interestingly, Stephenson worked as a consultant for Blue Origin, a virtual reality startup founded by Jeff Bezos to develop a spacecraft and space launch system. Since the Snow Crash, several other science fiction novels have alluded to the possibilities of the Metaverse. However, the following notable development was Ernest Clines’s 2011 novel “Ready Player One.”
How Far Are We From the Metaverse?
The companies speaking seriously regarding creating metaverses are all positioning it as an aspiration for the future. For now, it mainly serves as a conceptual model for how online environments like Nvidia’s Omniverse can become more immersive and deeply integrated into our daily lives.
Merging virtual reality with social media is likely to be the first step. Facebook has been talking a lot about its plans to do this recently and expects it to become a reality within five years.
However, many issues still need to be addressed before we are ready to fully move our lives online. While we may now be accustomed to doing many activities – shopping, entertainment, working, and socializing – in a digital environment, we’re not quite at the stage – in terms of technology or society – when we’re ready to do the same with bits that connect them all.
At the moment, there is an opportunity to get a taste of the bite-sized Metaverse. Epic Games has experienced pushing the boundaries of its Fortnite gaming universe to include community events and concerts, the latter of which featured Ariana Grande.
Some people think of the Metaverse as the “next generation” of the internet – what “online” will look like when 2D screens eventually become redundant, replaced by headsets or even lenses that can project images directly onto our retinas.
The truth is that it is still in the air – no one knows precisely what the architecture and rules will be when connected, and immersive environments will become our online home. But as the biggest names in the world of tech racing sell us their versions, we can expect a growing interest in the concept.
Fake NFT Websites
Experienced fraudsters can create fake NFT sites and marketplaces to trick you into compromising your account and wallet credentials. The replicated websites look so legitimate that even expert NFT owners cannot distinguish a counterfeit from a real webpage. How to avoid NFT scams:
- Look for a blue checkmark to be sure the seller is verified.
- Verify the URL of the Marketplace page then do your purchase.
General Metaverse Statistics and Facts
- In 2021, Facebook put $10 billion into its Metaverse division.
While VR and AR are still in their early stages, Facebook has set its sights on developing the entire Metaverse platform. The brand has invested huge amounts of money in its Reality Labs, developing immersive technologies to create a revolutionary Metaverse.
With over 2.8 billion monthly active users, Facebook could become a true hub for content creators in a new virtual “dimension.”
(Source: The Verge)
- In January 2022, 27 apps used the word “Metaverse” in their title or description.
This figure represents a 145% increase over the 11 apps that updated their names in October 2021. Similarly, 30 more apps added the phrases in December 2021; Facebook’s new name Meta isn’t a rebranding operation. It reflects the brand’s commitment to creating an immersive Metaverse experience for its users.
(Source: Statista)
- Every year, $54 billion is spent on virtual products within the Metaverse.
This is almost double the amount spent on buying music every year. Metaverse users can monetize their activities using new transaction methods, such as digital currencies and NFTs, as well as their digital goods. Metaverse digital merchandise includes everything from digital real estate to Air Jordans you can wear online to video game character skins.
(Source: JP Morgan)
- Snoop Dogg’s “Snoopverse” made $14 million in first-day revenue.
The Snoopverse was released in The Sandbox with 122 LANDS, 67 premium LANDS, special NFTs, and three small estates. The rapper is building a digital replica of his California mansion here for virtual parties, which is why someone paid $450,000 to be his neighbor.
(Source: The Crypto Times, Rolling Stone)
Mystifying Facts About the Metaverse
- Projections suggest the Metaverse will exceed $100 billion in 2022.
- 27.7 million players attended Travis Scott’s Fortnite virtual concert.
- North America owns 45.3% of the Metaverse market.
- In the first quarter of 2022, Roblox generated over 11.8 billion hours of user interaction.
- Lil Nas X’s Roblox performance garnered 33 million views in two days.
- 55% of internet users in the US have never heard of Horizon Workrooms.
- There are over 5,000 apps available for SteamVR.
Features of the Metaverse
Incorporation of Avatars
One of the main concepts of the Metaverse is creating digital avatars of oneself as a way to express one’s feelings and emotions uniquely. Everyone has their own digital identity, which can be static or animated and be distinctive to them. Digital avatars are a unique way of expressing oneself, as they can be an exact reproduction of your real form and a recreation of your favorite celebrities or something completely original.
The concept of gamification is introduced when users can change their avatars, creating a more engaging and dynamic experience. Avatars are often subject to change and can somewhat resemble the real-life counterparts of their users. Avatars can sometimes also be computer applications.
Users can control their avatars using keyboards, mice, joysticks, and specialized human-computer interface (HCI) devices. More realistic avatars can give viewers, or anyone who interacts with them, a more immersive experience.
Blockchain-based Operations
Blockchain allows consumers to secure their virtual assets and gives digital proof of ownership, making it an essential component of the Metaverse. The Metaverse is experiencing an increase in the volume of data, the value, and the importance of security and reliability.
Blockchain skills and technologies are needed to ensure the validity of the data in the Metaverse, and artificial intelligence is used to protect its diversity and richness of materials.
Due to the many shortcomings of centralized data storage in systems such as database management systems (DBMS), the Metaverse concept is incomplete without blockchain. Without the influence of a centralized organization, the blockchain-based Metaverse provides access to any digital place.
The Use of Virtual Land (Parcels)
On the Metaverse, anyone can purchase land with cryptocurrency. The land is a non-fungible token, a blockchain asset class that can’t be exchanged for other things. Size refers to the base number of pixels in the Metaverse real estate.
Digital storefronts, virtual games, and entertainment can interact on the virtual land. Its size and location will determine land use options. For example, sites near a virtual reality street can be helpful due to the possibility of display advertising.
Immersive Experiences (AR and VR)
Metaverse users will be able to have a more immersive experience that combines reality and the virtual world using mixed reality and VR/AR technologies. It is easy to see why the Metaverse is becoming more popular daily: it will bring games, concerts, and plays to life, and professional or educational encounters will feel more authentic and customized.
The main building blocks of Metaverse projects are VR and AR. Three key components are required for AR systems: the connection of real and virtual environments, real-time interaction, and accurate 3D object rendering.
Intersection with Artificial Intelligence
As a driving force behind enterprise research in areas such as content analytics, self-study speech processing, robotic interaction, computer vision, and full-body posture assessment, AI is critical to the Metaverse.
AlOps, a subfield of AI, uses machine learning to help companies manage their IT infrastructure, which will soon be applied to Metaverse systems. In addition, AI-powered chatbots are becoming more common among organizations. In the Metaverse, AI bots with realistic avatars can be used for various purposes, including sales, marketing, and customer support.
Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs) for Governance
A DAO is a governing body, such as a council or committee, that uses blockchain and smart contracts to reach a consensus on various decisions. According to DAO governance guidelines, Treasury Wallet offers money for farming across multiple networks and platforms.
All decisions in the DAO continue to be driven by proposals and voting processes. The procedure is vital in helping members vote on important decisions regarding the governance of the resources of the Metaverse.
Reliance on Human-Computer Interface Technology
Metaverse includes many diverse platforms, devices, and individual users on a large scale. The use of a human-computer interface in creating the Metaverse – particularly how to integrate user actions into the virtual world – is critical to achieving this goal.
To participate in certain activities, a human and a computer exchange information through a process called HCI. The most important benefit of HCI is that it helps groups needing formal training and information on connecting to computing systems.
A Focus On Social Interactions
People communicate and interact in the Metaverse through avatars and visual representations of the user. Users can interact and communicate both with the Metaverse and with other users. The place for these exchanges is called cyberspace, which serves as a digital representation of the real world.
But you need to be aware that there are differences between the economic and physical constraints of actual locations. One can imagine how our physical experience in the real world merges into one virtual environment. People will be able to navigate a limitless world through this holistic experience that will bring all these disparate counters together.
Supporting Web3
The goal behind Web3 is to usher in a new era of the internet. It is the progress of user ownership and control over their online content, digital assets, and online personas. Web3 and Metaverse technologies work in perfect harmony with each other. Web3 can provide a basis for connectivity in the Metaverse since the Metaverse is a virtual environment and prefers a decentralized web.
Metaverse Technology: Money and Expertise
This is a huge playing field, from social media moguls looking for new opportunities to make money to crypto enthusiasts trying to sell virtual property.
- Microsoft has awarded a $21.9 billion contract to produce augmented reality headsets for the US military.
There are potential apps for the Metaverse in industries far beyond what we call “entertainment.” An example would be Microsoft’s recent move toward the military-industrial complex.
In short, the tech giant released several prototype AR headsets for the US military a few years ago. The military liked them, and Microsoft has now secured a $21.9 billion contract to produce more than 120,000 headsets.
HoloLens for commercial use costs about $3,500 and lets you play with holograms. The military version will do a lot more, including thermal imaging radars and night vision. It also overlays tons of tactical information on soldiers’ vision to “increase lethality” and give them an edge in combat.
(Source: CNBC)
- Web 3.0 companies participating in the Metaverse market capitalization is 27.5 billion.
One of the funniest metaverse facts we’ll talk about is the difference between Web 2.0 and Web 3.0. The first is dominated by huge platforms like Twitter and Facebook, while the second is the supposed decentralized iteration of the Web.
The Metaverse, a place where virtual people use virtual currency to purchase virtual real estate, was conceived as a Web 3.0 medium. But then Web 2.0 giants like Facebook realized that there was money to be made from it and started working on their versions – and they overtook everyone else.
Recent metaverse statistics illustrate this well: the combined market cap of all Web 3.0 companies participating in the Metaverse is a measly $0.0275 trillion. That’s $27.5 billion (or about half of what Elon Musk spent buying Twitter). It is also only 0.18% of the value of Web 2.0 companies interested in the Metaverse.
(Source: Grayscale Investments)
- The Metaverse will be worth over $100 by the end of 2022.
In 2021, the global market for the Metaverse reached $63.83 billion. According to forecasts, this year, it will exceed $100 billion. Moreover, it will post a CAGR of 47.6% for the rest of the decade.
If true, that means the metaverse marketplace might be worth $1.5 trillion by 2029. However, it is very important to consider unforeseen events like global pandemics and wars as they can easily render forecasts useless. But, in the case of the Metaverse, in particular, the pandemic has ignited people’s interest in virtual worlds, thus creating a huge demand for XR services.
(Source: Fortune Business Insights)
Metaverse Trends for Those Who Care (And Those Who Don't)
Now that we have a good idea of how diverse the multiverse can be, there’s one more thing to consider: who does what. While we are all understandably afraid of next-generation technologies taking over our jobs, the Metaverse, like Artificial Intelligence, is creating jobs. No, it doesn’t mean virtual jobs.
- North America owns 45.3% of the Metaverse market.
Much of the world’s latest and greatest technology released over the past few decades has been developed in North America. VR is no exception. Metaverse usage statistics show that the continent accounts for over 45.3% of the market, followed by Asia-Pacific, which owns a third (33.8%), with Europe far behind, at just 20.9%.
(Source: Amra & Elma)
- 71% of American women aren’t interested in the Metaverse.
The Metaverse is still growing in popularity, but not everyone is equally interested in it. For example, in the US, only 7% of women say they are “very interested” in the Metaverse.
As for men, 18% (over 2.5 times more) are “very interested”), while 47% of the country’s male population is not particularly enthusiastic about the prospect of spending countless hours in virtual reality. 35% even claim they “are not interested at all.”
(Source: Amra & Elma)
- There are about 43,000 metaverse wallets.
You need one of these metaverse wallets to participate in the Web 3.0 economy (cryptocurrencies, NFTs, etc.). At the end of 2021, there were about 43,000 such wallets. This means there were also about the same number of people in Web 3.0 virtual worlds.
On the other hand, metaverse statistics show that this figure has grown astronomically since 2019, around 5,000 people. On a slightly less flashy side, a couple of thousand people don’t even compare to the hundreds of millions in Roblox and Fortnite.
However, there are over 220 million cryptocurrency users worldwide, so who knows? Perhaps they will also find their way into the Web 3.0 metaverse.
(Source: Grayscale Investments)
