Romain Girbal is an entrepreneur specializing in new technologies and co-founder of the French start-up Exclusible dedicated to Web3 in the field of luxury.
“Metavers! metavers! Do I look like a metaverse?”
The famous line of actress Arletty in
Hôtel du Nord
could thus be revisited in the era of Web3.
This new generation of internet technology, which is based on a decentralized, safer and faster infrastructure, will turn our lives upside down, like the arrival of "the Web" in the mid-1990s. Problem, the pitfalls still lie ahead many before this advent.
Starting with the abuse of language.
In order to sell wind at the price of compressed air, some tend to use the word "metavers" wrongly.
However, it is important to define precisely what the metaverse
is, a fortiori
to boomers whose concept seems as clear as
The term metaverse first appeared in 1992 in a science fiction novel,
The Virtual Samurai
, published by American author Neal Stephenson.
A work in which any individual can connect, thanks to specific glasses, to this three-dimensional universe where virtual actions have effects on the real world.
Other cult works, such as the films
Matrix (1999)
or, more recently,
Ready Player One
(2018) also explore digital universes where fiction is worth as much, if not more, than reality.
There is not only one and the same definition of the metaverse, or only one “version 2022” metaverse.
Romain Girbal
However, the etymology of the word metaverse alone can enlighten Tech neophytes.
In Greek, the prefix "Meta" means "beyond" and "Vers" is a condensed universe.
So it's simple, the metaverse is a world beyond reality.
In fact, at the moment, there is not just one and the same definition of the metaverse, or only one "2022 version" metaverse.
In this sense Mark Zuckerberg's Meta (ex Facebook), by appropriating the word, has probably misled it a little.
A metaverse open and accessible to all is possible.
It's up to us, tech professionals, to explain it well.
But naming things well won't be enough to make the Metaverse a success.
Make it simple, efficient and fun.
The scene does not lack spice.
It takes place on November 29 during a “metaverse gala” organized by the European Commission's foreign aid department.
Purpose of the operation: to raise awareness among young Europeans aged 18 to 35 who are politically neutral, to make them want to get involved.
Total cost: 400,000 euros for… six participants.
Devex.com journalist Vincent Chadwick, who was among the meager attendees, quickly found his virtual avatar almost entirely alone.
In short, an interstellar digital fiasco!
This is called the “empty metaverse” syndrome.
It's like throwing a birthday party and forgetting to
However, several solutions exist to tackle the problem of the “empty metaverse.”
Many metaverses remain without playfulness.
In our jargon, this is called “gamification”.
Without it, users get bored quickly.
The most patient of them pick up after ten minutes.
In contrast, metaverses with gamification like “Nemesis” and “The Sandbox” have users staying three times longer.
You have to create trust in a sometimes obscure digital world.
Romain Girbal
We are at the crossroads of the metaverse and this is what will make it a concrete value proposition for brands, users and investors.
On condition, however, of also respecting a certain ethics and not making the metaverse a trap galore.
It is therefore necessary to create trust in a sometimes obscure digital world.
In addition to raising awareness of the advantages that the metaverse can offer, it is imperative that the relationship of trust be established through transparency in the development process and to explain with humility that the metaverse has not yet reached the goal. peak of its possibilities.
Thus the European Union metaverse gala could have been crowned with success with an information campaign emphasizing the next technological steps that await us.
Read alsoMeta's metaverse project struggles to convince its own employees
The main reason to believe in the metaverse is technical progress.
Digital tools make it possible to process infinitely more information.
New instruments have appeared, such as virtual reality headsets, which promote a much greater immersion than that of a computer screen.
The blockchain, this shared and therefore totally decentralized database, makes it possible to certify the ownership of digital objects, including works of art or currencies.
Without even knowing it, few people today escape Web2.
Social networks, online sales sites, dating sites, professional platforms, are an integral part of our lives.
What Web3 offers is to go further by carrying out all these activities in an immersive, interactive and intelligent way.
I am convinced that this is indeed the future that is taking shape before us.
