• Bit.Country is referred to as the metaverse for metaverses.
• Metaverses can create their tokens, economics and governance.

In the last two years, humans have collectively realized that it’s very hard to beat a face-to-face interaction. I remember being at an industry conference a few years back and seeing a company displaying its virtual and augmented reality software. It was a great experience to put it on. I could see all the surrounding space, but a large CAD drawing of NASA Curiosity Rover was right in front. It was large enough to allow me to see the specifications and highlight specific parts. To see the interior, I was able to stick my head inside the car. At that moment I realized that, if I could have this in a virtual room with my clients, and we could all walk around the model to point, discuss, ask questions, and take notes… then face-to-face meetings have become overrated.

It seems that time will soon be here—thanks to the metaverse.

What’s the Metaverse?

Now that we know it is headed this way, it’s probably a good time to ask: what exactly is the metaverse?

The marketing for the metaverse over the past months would lead you to believe that it is a VR platform. What makes the metaverse unique isn’t the VR, though that is a key element. Metaverse refers to the merging digital spaces, social outlets, an overarching economic system, all of which are experienced in an interactive, immersive manner. It is difficult to envision a concrete application of the concept. Science fiction can help us see possible applications. Some versions of the idea are optimistic, while others seem bleak. One of the more likely versions (at some time) seems to be Ready Player One. That version is so useful and shows how a metaverse works.

What is the Metaverse and who are its members? It’s much bigger than Facebook/Meta

It is important to clarify the following question: Is Metaverse the new Facebook.

Facebook’s new branding, Meta, is meant to show users that they are working to adopt the metaverse model. Based on what they’ve said and how much they are investing, the “Meta metaverse” will be big. Is it really the only metaverse? Not even close. There are plans being made by many other large corporations to develop their own versions. This could lead to something very similar to social media today: multiple platforms with the same features, but different flavor options and target markets. How interconnected they will be is anyone’s guess at this point. But Meta’s version of the metaverse does have some representative features: a virtual meeting environment, a gaming platform, social features, and various ideas on how businesses will interact with customers.

The downsides will likely be the restrictions businesses might face in terms of Meta’s regulations, transaction fees, and the ever-present privacy and data tracking issues that have plagued Facebook/Meta more and more. Businesses will still have many potential customers as Meta can use its large user base to promote mass adoption in the metaverse.

While Meta’s version may be more mainstream, at least initially, it is important to look at the full range of metaverse versions under development.

Bit.Country, a decentralized, blockchain-based platform, couldn’t be more different. Dubbed the “metaverse of metaverses”, Bit.Country’s goal is to enable individuals, groups, companies, or other organizations to create their own metaverse.

Every slot is sold to the citizens of Bit.Country, who form part of network governance. Winners of the slots have the capacity (land) and the user-friendly tools they need to start developing their own metaverse, which can be as interconnected as they’d like. It supports Ethereum-compatible smart contracts and WASM. This means that any developer can create dApps, games and other metaverse components. It is not intended to be a gateway or intermediary because the blockchain-based ecosystem is decentralized.

Metaverses are able to make their own economics, governance and tokens. This could potentially be the best version of Ready Player One, as it shares many of the “free economy” aspects. The key challenge for Bit.Country will be reaching non-crypto audiences to show them that “decentralized” means much more than cryptocurrency.

The Metaverse: How can real-world companies improve their value?

Seeing that 2022 may very well be dubbed as the Year of the Metaverse, let’s look at a few sample use cases for what benefits a metaverse could hold. You should keep in mind that many, many businesses can have a presence within a metaverse.

What is more interesting though is to look at what a metaverse does well, and imagine use cases that add value a business couldn’t achieve otherwise. The metaverse does its job well when it can connect remote clients to an experience that is comparable or better than a face-to–face conversation.

Real Estate

You can imagine yourself looking at a property listing. If you can’t make it, your avatar can visit the metaverse office, where you speak to a real estate agent (real person in avatar form) about which listing or what parameters you are looking for. Instead of setting up appointments, driving from location to location, or flying into the city you want to look, you can visit as many listings as you’d like, right in the office. Through high-definition graphics you could see a near-perfect representation of the location, walking freely through it with your partner or colleagues, having discussions about what you like and don’t like.

Schools Trips

In school today, your class paid a small fee to visit a “destination history” location from a specialized provider. Your lesson today is about the Colosseum, Rome. Each student is transported to that location and able to see every detail. Then they are transported back in time where they see the Colosseum at its prime, getting a tangible experience they won’t soon forget.

Digital Twin Factory

As a manufacturing engineer, you are responsible for your company’s facilities in three different countries. Today your facility in Germany is having issues, so you log into that facility’s digital twin, which is fed with vast quantities of real time information. The avatar navigates the virtual factory, seeing all data from every machine and highlighting issues. When you reach the machine you can ping it. The technician will then adjust their headset. Your avatar will appear, and then you can discuss data and root causes as well as the possible solutions.

Yoga Studio

While you might not solve all the world’s problems with a yoga studio, you can make a lot of people’s lives a little better each day. All members of your studio have their mats setup at home. This allows them to log in and access your virtual studio. While some sports are too chaotic for today’s VR sets, yoga is perfect. It is possible to view your avatar’s arms and legs as you perform the moves. You can also see other classmates and talk to them during breaks. The best part, however, is that today’s session is on a small platform floating a few feet above a Hawaiian beach, with the sun slowly rising out in the distance.

Wrapping Up

The metaverse has opened up new possibilities. Technology and distance are less important than our imagination. Meta’s version will see some truly innovative features in the next year. However, we are especially excited to see what a decentralized “metaverse of metaverses” will offer, as creative minds develop more and more use cases every day.

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