Author of a book on the big tech companies that shaped Web 2.0, New York University professor and CNN host Scott Galloway sees the future of the Internet in a totally different light than narratives about the metaverse. and Web3 that have dominated discussions of technological innovation today.
In his participation in the SXSW, festival of innovation and digital culture that is celebrated in Austin (USA), Galloway predicted that the metaverse will not be built on virtual reality and augmented reality environments as projected by Meta (ex-Facebook) and decentralized platforms such as The Sandbox (SAND) and Decentraland (MANA).
Instead of immersive, sensory experiences that repurpose physical world environments, audio will be the core element of the metaverse. According to Galloway, andhe sound -more than the image- will allow more real and attractive interactions with artificial intelligence devices:
“I think the metaverse is going to be less like The Matrix and more like the movie Her. There’s something in the nature of sound, in having a device speak directly into your ears, that creates a level of intimacy, engagement and perhaps even addiction, which will shape the metaverse more than the visuals.”
Another factor that hinders engagement in virtual experiences that require headsets is that it causes physical discomfort. Galloway mentioned a survey conducted by Meta itself that revealed that 40% of users mentioned feeling nauseated when using the device in immersive environments.
Galloway also claimed that virtual assistants like Amazon’s Alexa will be ubiquitous. In many cases, these devices will replace human interlocutors in people’s daily lives to help them in everyday activitiesespecially related to the offer of expensive products and services to users.
Web3
The promise of decentralization and the distribution of value to Internet users through Web3 protocols is nothing more than an empty promise to Galloway. “There is no kind of popular power in Web3. In fact, it promotes new types of concentration [de poder]”said.
In that sense, Galloway aligns himself with Jack Dorsey, CEO of Block and former CEO of Twitter, and Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla. Both have already expressed their criticism of Web3questioning the alleged decentralization of protocols funded by venture capital funds, as Cointelegraph Brazil reported last year.
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