Is the Metaverse dead?

In a stunning turn of events, the once-promising Metaverse, a concept that captivated the tech world with its potential to revolutionise human interaction only a year or two ago, seems to have lost its steam. Born in 2021 when Facebook transformed into Meta, the capital-M Metaverse was expected to usher in a new era of virtual connectivity. However, after a short three-year lifespan, it has mostly been abandoned by the business world, leaving behind a legacy of shattered dreams and unfulfilled promises.

When Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, announced the birth of Meta and the Metaverse, he presented it as the future of the internet. He painted a picture of a seamless virtual world where users could interact and engage in immersive experiences. The media, eager to embrace the next big thing, showered praise upon the concept, hailing it as an expansive vision that would transform the internet as we knew it.

Unfortunately, the grandiose promises surrounding the Metaverse far exceeded its actual capabilities. The technology failed to deliver on its lofty claims; the glitchy avatars and underwhelming visuals presented a stark contrast to the futuristic landscapes showcased in Meta's promotional video.

Moreover, the Metaverse suffered from an acute identity crisis. While Zuckerberg spoke of it as a groundbreaking vision spanning multiple companies and the successor to the mobile internet, he failed to articulate clear use cases or address the fundamental problems the Metaverse aimed to solve. Virtual worlds and digital avatars were not new concepts, with predecessors dating back to the late 1990s. Despite technological advancements, Meta's own VR platform, Horizon Worlds, failed to provide a roadmap or a compelling vision for the Metaverse's future.

Despite these conceptual shortcomings, the business world eagerly jumped on the Metaverse bandwagon. Companies from various industries, including tech giants like Microsoft and entertainment powerhouses like Disney, rushed to develop their own Metaverse products. Wall Street investors and consultants competed to outdo one another in projecting the Metaverse's growth potential, with extravagant predictions ranging from significant shifts in the way we work to trillion-dollar opportunities.

However, when it came to actual adoption and usage, the Metaverse faltered. Decentraland, a well-funded decentralised Metaverse product, had a meagre number of daily active users compared to popular online games. Meta's Horizon Worlds also struggled to meet its user targets, with a significant percentage of user-created worlds remaining largely unvisited. Despite the vast resources at Meta's disposal, they failed to convince people to embrace the Metaverse.

The metaverse is out and AI is in

The Metaverse has been overshadowed by the emergence of generative AI. OpenAI's ChatGPT, in particular, has demonstrated its practical and immediate real-world applications, making it difficult for the Metaverse to compete. The tangible benefits it offers to individuals and businesses are substantial, making a meaningful impact on their productivity and bottom lines. Unlike the Metaverse, which is speculative in nature, generative AI provides concrete and valuable outcomes.

As the economy slowed and generative AI gained momentum, major players like Microsoft, Disney, and Walmart began retreating from their Metaverse endeavours. The billions invested and the fervent hype surrounding the Metaverse resulted in substantial job losses. Ultimately, the final blow came when Zuckerberg and Meta shifted their focus and resources toward advancing AI, signalling the end of their commitment to the Metaverse.

The apparent demise of the Metaverse serves as a poignant reminder of the dangers of blindly following hype without a solid foundation. Mark Zuckerberg's lack of a clear vision and his apparent disinterest in the Metaverse beyond its potential for financial gain highlight the risks associated with placing unwavering trust in visionary tech leaders. 

The venture-capital community must reflect on their role in fueling the hype cycle and allocating vast sums of money based on flimsy press releases.

Ultimately, interest waned for the Metaverse as fast as the hype built up. Evidence of this can be seen by looking at Google search traffic for the Metaverse, which dwindled significantly over recent months, taking it back to pre-announcement levels.

While the Metaverse is now largely considered a tech fad like Google Glass, to say that it is dead is probably too early a call. It is not that the online universe is going to disappear, but rather that it may have reached its limit – for now.