• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Cade Hildreth

Everything You SHOULD'VE Been Taught in School.

MENUMENU
  • Blog
  • Finance
    • Cryptocurrency
    • Real Estate
    • Gold and Silver
    • Investing
    • Increasing Income
    • Financial Q&A
  • Real Estate
  • Health
    • Fitness
    • Nutrition
    • Confidence
  • LGBTQ+
  • Podcast
    • "What You Should've Been Taught"
    • Audio Feed of the Website
    • Ask a Podcast Question
  • About
    • Testimonials
    • About Cade
    • Rugby Bio
    • Instagram
    • Contact
You are here: Home / Finance / Cryptocurrency / What Is the Metaverse?
What Is the Metaverse?

What Is the Metaverse?

January 10, 2022 By Cade's Team Leave a Comment

With 2022 upon, most of us have heard the word “metaverse” spoken around us, if for no other reason than Facebook generated enormous media attention when it rebranded itself as “Meta” in late 2021. But, what does the term “metaverse” mean and why is it one of the hottest digital trends of late?

Most importantly, will the metaverse impact the world as seriously as the internet did?

With these questions in mind, this article will provide insight into what the metaverse is and the likely changes it will usher in. Let’s dive in.

Metaverse Meaning: What Is It?

The metaverse is a term that refers to immersive environments that are emerging as a result of advances in virtual technologies (VR) and augmented realities (AR). Think of it like the internet, but immersive, so you can interact within it.

The prefix “meta” means “referring to itself”, while the term “universe” means “matter and space considered as a whole.” Thus, the term “metaverse” refers to a universe that exists on top of or is reflective of the universe that we’ve always occupied.

For this reason, the images conjured up by this new digital space can be vague, ominous, utopian, even strange, in some cases.

While the meaning of the metaverse is certain to evolve over time, at this time it describes a digital realm where you can exist as an avatar, interact with other people’s 3D representatives, and can undertake a wide range of activities, from purchasing clothes for your digital wardrobe, to socializing, working, and gaming.

While the term “metaverse” wasn’t invented by Mark Zuckerberg, the term has picked up steam in the wake of Facebook’s surging investments into VR and AR investments. Most notably, Facebook bought the virtual reality company Oculus in 2014 for an astounding $2 billion, while Facebook’s parent company changed its name to “Meta” in October of 2021.

Leadership at Facebook has publicly reported by that it expects its investments into augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) through Facebook Reality Labs to reduce its overall operating profit for 2021 by approximately $10 billion. Meaning, it is investing into this emerging realm now with the hope to reap (really) big rewards in the future.

Decentraland and The Sandbox

The rise of the “metaverse” has grown since the advent of two popular digital spaces that serve as templates for these types of virtual reality worlds—namely, The Sandbox and Decentraland.

The Sandbox is a virtual world consisting of almost 200,000 plots of land that people can rent or own, along with general spaces that allow for gameplay, buying, and trading goods. It is a centralized virtual world that was created by The Sandbox gaming company in 2012 and is now operated by its co-founder and chief operating officer, Sebastien Borget. Over the past few years, the Sandbox’s total virtual land sales have surged past $21 million.

Decentraland is a little smaller, but it’s a similar idea and it’s also incredibly popular. It is different from The Sandbox in that it is not run by a single (“centralized”) company. Rather, it is decentralized world that runs on the Ethereum network. Specifically, Decentraland is an open source 3D virtual world that launched to the public in early 2020. Its purpose is to allow a global network of users to build and continually evolve a shared virtual world. Similar to The Sandbox, virtual plots of land within it can be bought within Decentraland as NFTs (non-fungible tokens).

For those who aren’t familiar with the term NFT, it is a simply a term that describes a unique, non-interchangeable unit of data that is stored on a blockchain. Usually, the purpose of an NFT is to publicly track the ownership of digital goods.

Metaverses and the Evolution of 3D Immersive Worlds

Put simply, immersive metaverses such as The Sandbox and Decentraland have incentivized people and companies (like Meta/Facebook) to invest heavily into virtual headsets, 3D technology, and the rapidly expanding theme of virtual worlds.

Plus, the pandemic exposed the fact that it’s possible to do a lot of work online, so the metaverse is emerging as an immersive way to engage remotely. There are a lot of other applications that could come from the existence of 3D metaverses, though.

At this time, it’s not as important to think about what the metaverse is as opposed to what it could become. Put yourself in the shoes of someone in 1970 who was wondering what the internet might do to the world. It would have been impossible to predict the internet’s far reaching applications, but its use today it is ubiquitous.

What we do know is that technology never goes backward. Meaning, technologies cannot be “undiscovered”. Thus, it’s extremely likely that 3D immersive worlds (aka, “metaverses”) will be here to stay.

Social Applications of the Metaverse

What will the metaverse mean for your future social life? While it’s hard to know for sure, early metaverses suggest that you will exist within these immersive realms as a strikingly lifelike avatar. Your friends will have similar avatars and you will all spend time together in digitally created public squares, restaurants, cafes, and concerts.

These places will be constructed by digital architects, run by actual businesses, and hosted by the internet. Within these worlds, you will be able to purchase clothes, travel to “distant” places, and engage in an incredible range of compelling activities of that you wouldn’t otherwise be able to (think skydiving or exploring the surface of the moon, for example).

You’ll also have the ability to express yourself in different ways, do things that would pose far too much risk in real life, and “travel” nearly instantaneously. In some ways, the metaverse may be similar to a lucid dream where you have the ability to do things that you could never do in a waking state.

These are all speculations, but the fundamental pieces are already in order. Some of the rough edges still need to get worked out, though.

Virtual Reality Limitations

If you’ve played a virtual reality game or worn a headset recently, you know that VR is getting better. It has the ability to startle you, engage you, and provide an interesting space to watch movies or play games.

That said, it’s not exactly a mirror of real life. Things are still clunky. Not to mention, a virtual reality headset isn’t the most discrete thing in the world. If the streamlining of smartphones and almost all technology is any indication of the future, though, that clunkiness will be gone soon.

Moore’s law states that the number of transistors in an integrated circuit should double almost every two years. That’s a fancy way of saying that computers double their potential every two years based on human application and desire to improve.

Improved technology allows humans to improve upon future technology, and growth becomes exponential. Once the metaverse hits the mainstream, the demand for improvements in virtual reality will accelerate. Companies will fill that space like cool air rushing into a warm room.

Potential Benefits and Consequences of the Metaverse

Like anything, the metaverse could be very good or very bad. On one hand, it could reduce human consumption of fossil fuels and other consequences caused by travel. A comprehensive metaverse could reduce our carbon footprint significantly.

There could be a lot more efficiency in the workplace as well. Playing as yourself in the metaverse would give you immediate access to far more information and allow you to manipulate that information in whatever way you like.

For example, you could snap your fingers and pull up a massive database and drag data points with your hand into a spreadsheet that gets presented to a group of your coworkers in a virtual room.

On the other side of things, we can only speculate as to the impact that such a place could have on human culture. The smartphone and internet have shifted the foundation of many cultures already.

While technology can help us stay in touch and streamline the things we do every day, there’s a dark side to it as well.

For example, digital addictions of all kinds are omnipresent. Technology tends to reduce the amount of time that people spend on in person, face-to-face interactions. Depression and anxiety in younger people are closely correlated with smartphone use.  And, technology can expose us to thousands of digital advertisements every single day.

An immersive digital world will surely produce similar effects, if not worse, so we do need to be cautious as we start venturing into these enticing virtual worlds.

The Future of the Metaverse?

Any way you look at it, the metaverse is fascinating. Never before in history have we have the technology and means necessary to interact with each other within these types of immersive worlds.

Now the question is, how will the metaverse affect our lives in the decades to come? If you have thoughts about this, let me know in the comments below.

Want to stay in the loop? Join nearly two million other readers who are learning how to increase their income, invest in real estate, buy and sell crypto, and so much more.
Are we connected on social media? If not, let’s do it so I can share in your world too: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest | TikTok | LinkedIn
5/5 - (1 vote)

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)

Filed Under: Cryptocurrency Tagged With: blockchain, metaverse

About Cade's Team

Cade Hildreth is an LGBTQ+ entrepreneur, real estate investor, and former USA Rugby Player. Cade has founded 7-figure businesses, scaled websites to millions of views, acquired a portfolio of income-producing residential and commercial real estate assets, and played rugby worldwide.

As a world-class athlete, Cade has represented the USA Rugby Team, trained extensively at the Olympic Training Center, and played with elite squads from across New Zealand and Australia.

Often compared to Tim Ferriss and Ramit Sethi, Cade teaches millions to expand financially, while living an authentic and adventurous life.

Reader Interactions

Tell Us What You Think! Cancel reply

Primary Sidebar

  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • TikTok

“As an LGBTQ+ entrepreneur, real estate investor, former USA Rugby Player, and fitness fanatic, I’ll teach you what your parents and teachers should’ve taught you, but didn’t know themselves.” -Cade Hildreth

Want to know what I learned making my first few million? Subscribe here.

Or, listen to Cade’s articles on the go as a Podcast.

As we know from history, good people don’t spend As we know from history, good people don’t spend their time harassing marginalized communities. 

Think Hitler, think slave owners, think people who created assimilative boarding schools for Native Americans…

In honor of respecting other people, here are today's truths: 

1. Good people don’t spend their time harassing marginalized communities. 

2. Emotionally mature people don’t require “power over” others to be ok with themselves. 

3. Healthy people allow others to be who they are, not who they want them to be in the name of their own self-comfort. 

4. Diversity is a constant of nature. 

Which one is your favorite?
People will honk if you change lanes. Let them. People will honk if you change lanes. Let them. 

Let me know in comments if you (wholeheartedly) agree. 💙
How to get 400% returns in real estate! Enjoy th How to get 400% returns in real estate! 

Enjoy this clip from my recent podcast, “Kelsey Jang, Army Engineer Officer & Company Commander, on Getting Started In Real Estate“.

Listen to the podcast itself (link below) to hear Kelsey (@kelshjang)share her experience with buying her first rental property priced at only $110K with 10% down.

It will provide you with a real-world example for how to get started in real estate—and start enjoying outsized gains!

Listen here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-you-shouldve-been-taught/id1523094339?i=1000591353528

Have questions? Ask them in comments ⬇️
Credit Scores: Quick tips and tricks for driving y Credit Scores: Quick tips and tricks for driving your credit score up ⬆️

Which tip here was the most helpful? Let me know in comments… 💵🤔

Also, what topic would you like to learn more about next? 🤓
There are many things that bring me great joy, but There are many things that bring me great joy, but here are three of them: 

1. Top surgery, which has helped me to feel deeply present in my body 

2. Beanie’s furry and funny face 🥹

3. My incredible wife, whose uniqueness and spunk I cherish! 

Notice that none of these are professional or financial or even personal accomplishments…

They are simply profoundly beautiful parts of life. The best and most sacred parts, really. 

If this resonates, leave a 💙 in comments … wishing you all deep joy today too ☺️🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️
“Your gentleness for yourself with change the wo “Your gentleness for yourself with change the world.” -Grace Kellawon

My life isn’t perfect, but it is carefully and intentionally crafted.

Truthfully, it has been an incredible process to trust myself over the barrage of noise society will throw at you—but to me, that’s some of life’s most important work. 

This is why I will always aim to be gentle with myself — and, I hope, with others too. 💙

Photo notes: 

We’ve got a beaver up in these parts! 🦫

My wife Erin, the beekeeper, has serious skills with it comes to lighting her bee smoker, lol 🔥🐝

Rainbows are beautiful 🌈
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Recent Posts

Gender Spectrum

Gender Spectrum: A Scientist Explains Why Gender Isn’t Binary

Manufactured home community (MHC) investing

Top 5 Reasons to Invest in Manufactured Home Communities

Is a 401k worth it

Why 401K’s Are A Bad Idea

master-list-of-real-estate-syndicators

Master List of Real Estate Syndicators for 2023

Categories

  • Biohacking
  • Confidence
  • Cryptocurrency
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Exclude
  • Finance
  • Fitness
  • Gold and Silver
  • Increasing Income
  • Investing
  • LGBTQ+
  • Nutrition
  • Podcast
  • Real Estate

Ask a Podcast Question | Contact Us | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy

COPYRIGHT © 2019 · CADEHILDRETH.COM | PHONE: ‪(202) 660-4705‬  | 800 CORPORATE DRIVE, SUITE 301, STAFFORD, VA 22554, USA

 

*Disclaimer: Nothing on this site should be construed as medical, health, or financial advice. Before making any health decisions, you should consult with your doctor. Before making any financial decisions, you should consult with professional adviser, such as a financial planner or CPA.