The metaverse was once seen as a turning point for the technological world, promising a dynamic remote interactive environment. However, it quickly faced criticism and backlash, and people are now losing interest. Even Mark Zuckerberg, who re-introduced the concept of the metaverse, has stopped pitching it to advertisers. Meta’s Reality Labs division, responsible for VR and the metaverse, recorded an operating loss of $4.279 billion in the last financial quarter alone. Meta is now focused on building LLaMA, their large language model (LLM) competitor of ChatGPT and Bard. The rise of generative AI could slowly but surely kill the metaverse, or could it?
Generative AI has developed at a rapid pace, evolved from just a concept to taking over the better half of the world. Organizations and businesses have quickly adapted to GenAI, creating the impression that the former might meet a slow and steady death. However, the metaverse is a social platform built on multiple technologies such as virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and AI. The rapid development of generative AI could further fuel the growth of the metaverse in various ways, including creating new objects, environments, and experiences without the need for human designers and programmers, helping users create custom avatars, eradicating cybersecurity issues by creating dynamic software that automatically scans files for viruses, malware, and other issues, and performing research on critical cybersecurity issues.
While generative AI has some potential positive impacts on the metaverse, there are also several possible downsides, especially from a cybersecurity perspective. Hackers and cybercriminals are already using the technology to exploit user security in various ways, such as by helping them create better phishing emails. Moreover, there have been reports of hackers utilizing tools such as ChatGPT to create malware. Its implementation can become a safety hazard for metaverse users, becoming a major setback in its development.
However, generative AI won’t necessarily kill the metaverse. Despite the adverse effects of harmful AI, 17% of companies in the business, computer, and IT sectors view the metaverse as a good business opportunity. Even Zuckerberg claims that this shift in focus could potentially boost metaverse development. Several organizations, including Nike, J.P. Morgan, and Gucci, recognize its marketing potential and have invested in the metaverse. Accenture uses the technology for training, onboarding, and other tasks, while BMW has AR labs used to design and prototype new products to judge their market value. Fashion brands such as Balenciaga have created futuristic worlds where characters wear their products, and various production companies now use the metaverse to host events such as concerts.
The Dynamic Future of Generative AI and the Metaverse
The modern world has applied both generative AI and the metaverse in a significant number of areas, cutting down their workloads and increasing efficiency in running their operations. The combination of the two could dynamically change how organizations function. The metaverse provides organizations with a safe and cost-effective way to run business globally, while generative AI opens up new avenues for growth. Their combined use could mean a whole new pathway for organizations to manage their operations, bringing about new avenues of growth and ease of use, making it easy for organizations to seamlessly shift from a virtual to a non-virtual environment.
Moreover, this integration could also mean a significant cut in costs for organizations, specifically within developer and programmer teams. The gap between technical and non-technical knowledge could quickly be bridged, leading to vast potential for growth and development. Combining generative AI and the metaverse could dynamically shape a much more technologically developed future.
The core idea of the metaverse is to create a social platform. To make it fully functional, however, it must be integrated with interactive technologies like VR, AR, and AI. The rise of generative AI does not necessarily spell the metaverse’s downfall. On the contrary, they could propel each other’s development, creating a dynamic future for organizations.
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