Is the “Metaverse” the original? An industry manager bets his company on it.
meta (META) Daniel O’Brien, America’s President of VR headset developers, is struggling with the world of virtual reality HTC Viveclaims that the technology will spread throughout the corporate world and eventually become a mainstream consumer product.
It may even be as popular as the smartphone one day, O’Brien told Yahoo Finance (video above).
The technology known as “Metaverse” immerses users in a digital simulation of the real world. However, it is far from fully developed. For years, companies have been promoting immersive products like VR as a the next border in mainstream technology. No company has invested more in the Metaverse than Meta (META), its Reality Labs division cost the platform nearly $4 billion in the first quarter of 2023. The division saw cuts in the last year.
Beyond Meta’s problems, O’Brien said companies are pushing ahead and developing wearable VR products with “real world” professional applications. Some examples include allowing reach medical educators Larger classes while maintaining a high quality of training and enabling manufacturers Test products before they exist in the tangible world.
O’Brien said the current suite of Metaverse applications – which HTC Vive dubs “VIVERSE” – aims to “actually deliver business value,” including cost savings and streamlining collaboration and product design. These VR products are being developed in industries such as automotive, aerospace and healthcare that invest resources in the development, design, training and simulation of Metaversum products.
For example, HTC’s VIVE headsets were used surgeons And firefighters to train them in a safe, virtual environment, O’Brien said.
According to HTC, students who used the VIVE Focus 3 headset practiced from home in a virtual operating room. Firefighters using VIVE Pro Eye and the VIVE FLAIM Trainer were able to make line-of-sight graphics more visible during training.
“The long term is about moving the headsets and the technology into lighter, more portable, simpler ergonomics that connects to a network — and then actually changing the use cases,” O’Brien said.
HTC has focused on advancing enterprise-centric VR technology. This was presented in January Vive XR Elite, his first standalone headset. Engadget described the product as intended Rival Meta’s Quest Pro.
“[It’s]something that’s within the realm of glasses,” O’Brien said.
But the product is expensive. At $1,099, it costs about the same as a MacBook or iPhone. O’Brien said the XR Elite represents a step forward in VR headsets that break down major barriers to consumer adoption. He predicted that products would eventually be connected to the internet via 5G 6Gand provide “digital overlays and digital introductions” capabilities.
Of course, when it comes to the overall Metaverse market, the numbers are still a long way off at this point. O’Brien cited a prediction from Citi that said it might be worth it $8 trillion to $13 trillion by 2030.
But he thinks overall “we’re going to see very, very aggressive growth,” O’Brien said.
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