Metaverse VR Project, When Problem Solver Became the  Problem for Facebook

Recent layoffs in Meta have been blamed on Zuckerberg’s Virtual Reality Project Metaverse. Metaverse, as per Zuckerberg is a Virtual Reality approach to the problems of the real world. But what is the reality of this Virtual Reality project? Is it just a fab or the world is really going to have an unprecedented and never seen approach to the problems it faces? Read on to know the reality of this project.

The real world is currently dealing with a variety of problems, including the extinction of species and loss of biodiversity, unprecedented environmental change, disasters like food crisis, pandemic like COVID-19, the conflict in the Ukraine, terrorism, rising oil prices, inflation, a shortage of fresh water, an increase in global temperature, struggles with floods and landslides, and children's health and education. Although not exhaustive, this list does cover all the problems that our modern, technologically advanced society is currently experiencing.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, the world has witnessed a rise in the use of technologies when essential services were delivered through hands-free techniques like the robot served meals, collection of the sample of covid testing collected by robotic arms. Education went on total online mode.

Drones were being used to deliver medicines. Foot-pressed dispensers of hand sanitizers without touch of the human hand. This all led to more use of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, cloud computing, the internet of things (IoT), robotics, clean energy, quantum computing, telemedicine, etc. are all working to find creative solutions to these global problems.

Electric cars, fuel cell vehicles, and cutting-edge battery technologies all help achieve zero emissions. For their internal energy needs, manufacturing units are considering using green hydrogen and green ammonia.

Robotics and AI are used in precision farming. To manage soil and crops effectively, precision farming uses data analytics and AI. To increase crop quality and profitability, robotics and GPS aid in the collection and mapping of field data.

For tasks like spraying, harvesting, and weeding, robotic automated systems are used. Artificial intelligence is widely used for a variety of healthcare use cases, including better diagnosis, the prediction, and prevention of communicable diseases, increased patient and healthcare system engagement, the powering of surgical robots, and increased healthcare system efficiency.

Technology applications like artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and IoT have developed over time as businesses and people have come to appreciate the advantages of real-time. The majority of them are now frequently used to address issues in the real world in a variety of industries, nations, regions, and demographics. It has gained popularity and is now a crucial component of the technological ecosystem.

META CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Metaverse

In an open letter to Zuckerberg, CEO of Altimeter Capital, Brad Gerstner stated that Meta had "drifted into the land of excess—too many people, too many ideas, and too little urgency." When growth is quick and easy, this lack of focus and fitness is hidden, but it becomes fatal when growth slows and technology advances.

Around this time last year, Facebook surprised everyone by rebranding as Meta. The company has invested billions of dollars and hired thousands of tech professionals in this one year to work toward creating The Metaverse.

The next platform will be even more immersive — an embodied internet where you are in the experience, not just viewing it, predicted Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg at the time. The Metaverse, as we refer to it, will influence every product we create. But in this past year, not much of this multi-billion dollar investment has paid off. The virtual reality project caused the fifth increase in overall costs for Meta's third earnings. Investors in the company are also concerned about this.

The last thing I want to do after a long day at work is live inside a computer, said Snap CEO and founder, Evan Spiegel last week while speaking at the Wall Street Journal's Tech Live conference.

Phil Spencer, who is in charge of Microsoft's Xbox division, expressed a similar opinion about Metaverse during the same event. I'm going to get in trouble for saying this, but it's a poorly made video game, he said. Are you creating a metaverse that resembles a conference room? I discovered that I don't want to spend the majority of my time there. The metaverse is "a word I'll never use," he added, echoing the sentiments of Apple SVP of global marketing Greg Joswiak. Craig Federighi, Apple's SVP of software, agreed with him immediately.

In an interview with the Dutch publication Bright earlier this month, Apple CEO Tim Cook stated, "I always think it's important that people understand what something is. Furthermore, I doubt that the average person could explain what the metaverse is.

I went out into Mumbai's streets and asked the locals if they were aware of the Metaverse to determine whether the Apple CEO's assertions were accurate.

92% of the people I spoke with weren't sure of it and showed little interest in learning more. Those who knew exactly what was inside this Metaverse, however, didn't seem particularly excited to live there. The Metaverse, according to some, can improve some consumer experiences, primarily gaming and shopping. The real world will never be replaced by it.

Therefore, it is clear that the big tech industry does not support the concept of an alternate reality, and those who would use it are not confident that it will soon become a reality. So, is Metaverse actually the future of our generation and the next big thing, or is it just a fad? The answer lies only in the times to come.