Re-defining the virtual world through the metaverse

In a world where everything is moving further and further into digital, the metaverse is part of a wider transformation of our digital lives. It is a pure online world where people can choose to retreat to game, work and communicate. It is considered bymany as the latest evolution of interpersonal communications. In another way, the metaverse could even be thought of as the next generation of the internet. As the next step in advancement of the web and social media, it brings us progressively closer to a fully simulated virtual reality through disruptive transformation, says James Morris-Manuel, EMEA managing director of Matterport.

However, the metaverse requires a digitised copy of the real world as an entry point, in order to provide fully connected, immersive and engaging 3D experiences. Extended reality technologies including virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) alongside digital twins virtual replicas of the physical world are perfectly positioned to create that environment.

As conversations around the metaverse intensify, many businesses are now exploring how they can build on the metaverse’s foundational elements to bring greater opportunities for consumers and businesses alike. By deploying digital twins, organisations can import dimensionally accurate real-life spaces into the virtual mirror world that the metaverse offers. There is a lot of potential unrealised value in it too; EY recently estimated that digital twins will have a projected market size of $48bn (€41.97bn) by 2026, demonstrating its wider economic potential.

The market opportunity of the metaverse

The potential for digital twins and the metaverse is considerable. The metaverse could fundamentally change the way that businesses and consumers experience, interact with, and analyse the physical environment of the built world. Digital twins bring online a mass of analog data that can be searched, modelled, and ultimately used to derive value from physical spaces. There is significant benefit in accruing this data and applying the insights generated from it to improve both businesses and society at large. This data and the ability to source it, search it and use it will open a vast array of future opportunities and evolve infinite applications.

Successful businesses will be those who ensure digital twins are part of their strategic planning, both to offer new experiences to consumers in the growth of the metaverse and to optimise their own productivity and operations. From the evolving worlds of property ownership or virtual gaming experiences, through to the AI technology that will underpin it all, digital twins are helping to build the mirror world, a digital version of everything we see around us, autonomously.

The business impact of digital twins across industries

Beyond the metaverse, there is also the wider business case for digital twin technology.Using digital twins, businesses can create dimensionally accurate replicas of physical locations, which operate as a separate entity as a virtual layer. With increased demand for convenient, engaging and digital-first experiences, the use of digital twin technology has accelerated and is spreading exponentially across multiple industries. The benefits of the technology are recognised in a wide range of sectors from engineering, construction, architecture, travel and hospitality, through to insurance, and facilities.

One example is the retail sector. Even before the onset of the pandemic, traditional brick-and-mortar stores were under pressure to stay competitive in a market increasingly dominated by eCommerce. Using digital twin technology, retailers can now remodel and continuously develop hundreds of stores more rapidly, and remotely. Digital twin technology also enables retailers to provide more immersive experiences to improve customer engagement.

In the construction industry, engineers can virtually visit locations to plan any challenging or potentially invasive construction work remotely, accelerating construction schedules through faster project management and decision making. Together, the business impact is both sizable and lucrative for all involved parties. 

The road to the metaverse

The process towards building the metaverse will take time and its final conceptualisation could take any number of forms. To be realised, it will involve digital twin technology that combines computing technology, data, and computational photography. And this technology is becoming more widely accessible, via iPhone, 360 degree or LIDAR cameras.

James Morris-Manuel

A physical space can be easily and quickly captured and turned into an accurate and immersive digital replica using 3D spatial data technology cameras to blend the structural integrity of a space with 4K HD photographic realism. By incorporating Artificial Intelligence (AI) into the 3D reconstruction process, the process can be fully automated to enable businesses to scale with equal precision to millions of buildings and spaces of any kind, anywhere in the world.

At its core, the scale of a potential metaverse is a more interactive, richly detailed evolution of the world. By digitising the built world using digital twins, businesses can unlock value and accessibility for every space on the planet, enabling the emergence of a potentially limitless number of future metaverse services. Powered by ever-evolving technology innovation, alongside insight from the sheer magnitude of analog data available in the physical built environment, digital twins are just scratching the surface of arguably the opportunity of the next decade.

The author is James Morris-Manuel, EMEA managing director of Matterport.

Comment on this article below or via Twitter: @IoTNow_OR @jcIoTnow

RECENT ARTICLES

Semtech enhances global connectivity with NTN support in HL78 modules

Posted on: March 29, 2024

Semtech Corporation has announced the integration of non-terrestrial network (NTN) support into its HL series LPWA modules, specifically the HL7810 and HL7812. This significant advancement showcases a leap forward in enabling uninterrupted global connectivity even amidst the most challenging conditions.

Read more

Enhance EV charging performance with cellular connectivity

Posted on: March 28, 2024

Electric vehicles (EVs) are steadily growing their market share at the expense of internal combustion engine vehicles. The growth is fuelled by several factors. Perhaps most importantly, prices for EVs have started to drop as competition in the industry is intensifying. New players and models are emerging, prompting several established EV makers to lower their

Read more
FEATURED IoT STORIES

What is IoT? A Beginner’s Guide

Posted on: April 5, 2023

What is IoT? IoT, or the Internet of Things, refers to the connection of everyday objects, or “things,” to the internet, allowing them to collect, transmit, and share data. This interconnected network of devices transforms previously “dumb” objects, such as toasters or security cameras, into smart devices that can interact with each other and their

Read more

The IoT Adoption Boom – Everything You Need to Know

Posted on: September 28, 2022

In an age when we seem to go through technology boom after technology boom, it’s hard to imagine one sticking out. However, IoT adoption, or the Internet of Things adoption, is leading the charge to dominate the next decade’s discussion around business IT. Below, we’ll discuss the current boom, what’s driving it, where it’s going,

Read more

9 IoT applications that will change everything

Posted on: September 1, 2021

Whether you are a future-minded CEO, tech-driven CEO or IT leader, you’ve come across the term IoT before. It’s often used alongside superlatives regarding how it will revolutionize the way you work, play, and live. But is it just another buzzword, or is it the as-promised technological holy grail? The truth is that Internet of

Read more

Which IoT Platform 2021? IoT Now Enterprise Buyers’ Guide

Posted on: August 30, 2021

There are several different parts in a complete IoT solution, all of which must work together to get the result needed, write IoT Now Enterprise Buyers’ Guide – Which IoT Platform 2021? authors Robin Duke-Woolley, the CEO and Bill Ingle, a senior analyst, at Beecham Research. Figure 1 shows these parts and, although not all

Read more

CAT-M1 vs NB-IoT – examining the real differences

Posted on: June 21, 2021

As industry players look to provide the next generation of IoT connectivity, two different standards have emerged under release 13 of 3GPP – CAT-M1 and NB-IoT.

Read more

IoT and home automation: What does the future hold?

Posted on: June 10, 2020

Once a dream, home automation using iot is slowly but steadily becoming a part of daily lives around the world. In fact, it is believed that the global market for smart home automation will reach $40 billion by 2020.

Read more

5 challenges still facing the Internet of Things

Posted on: June 3, 2020

The Internet of Things (IoT) has quickly become a huge part of how people live, communicate and do business. All around the world, web-enabled devices are turning our world into a more switched-on place to live.

Read more