The world faces an unprecedented time. If you have loved ones in Ukraine or family affected elsewhere I hope they are safe. I can’t provide you any clarity on the current global situation or genuine words of hope (things will likely get worse before they get better).
But, what I do have to offer is a brief distraction from our world, a window into a different world.
What is The Metaverse?
“No one knows what it means, but it’s provocative. It gets the people going.” - Chazz Michael Michaels
Defining The Metaverse
The Metaverse still remains an amorphous term with no clear definition, although that hasn’t stopped notable individuals or entities from trying their best.
I’ve compiled a variety of best definitions from both companies and individuals at the forefront of this space (bolded = emphasis mine).
“A place where we’ll play and connect in 3D.” – Meta
“The future of the internet: A massively-scaled, persistent, interactive, and interoperable real-time platform comprised of interconnected virtual worlds where people can socialize, work, transact, play, and create.” - Coinbase
“A persistent, live digital universe that affords individuals a sense of agency, social presence, and shared spatial awareness, along with the ability to participate in an extensive virtual economy with profound societal impact.” - Pier Kicks, Bitkraft Ventures
“The Metaverse is a massively scaled and interoperable network of real-time rendered 3D virtual worlds which can be experienced synchronously and persistently by an effectively unlimited number of users with an individual sense of presence, and with continuity of data, such as identity, history, entitlements, objects, communications, and payments.” – Matthew Ball, METV ETF, MakersFund, Epyllion Ventures
Much like the early days of the internet, the definition is largely unimportant, but the overall theme remains meaningful. Pulling from these definitions, we can weave a common thread from phrases like ”massively scaled digital worlds” and “virtual economies (transact & play)” as well as terms like “synchronous”, “interconnected”, and “interoperable/data portability”. During the early adoption of the internet, it was similarly categorized by phrases like “real-time information”, “an information network”, and “publicly accessible”. What the internet eventually manifested into was so much more than the early definitions, but the foundational properties remained largely true. Similarly for the metaverse, its core value will be applications enabled by composable data, rich synchronous(shared) experiences, and a greater digital agency of one’s online life. It’s these properties that we should look towards as the guiding light for “the metaverse” rather than a definition that will certainly change over the coming years.
Web3’s Role in The Metaverse Stack
Using a broad brush, we can imagine the potential interconnected infrastructure of the Metaverse & Web3 from the perspective of the end consumer.
For a deep dive into Web3’s Role in the Metaverse, check out the full post for Enterprise subscribers on Messari. And you can view a higher resolution of the image on my Twitter profile.
Curated Content
Evmos airdrop calculator for the rekted.
A great list of investment themes from Electric Capital
Build your own hot-ball money monitor.
A thread of stories of finance.
Historically, major geopolitical events tend to be good buying opportunities.
Reading up on the Curve wars.
See you next week, probably.
Such a necessity, I know I see my future in the optimistic lens weather virtual or not. The blockchain technology is just starting and I want every bit of it, every piece of knowledge I can obtain
Hi Mason- I've been involved in crypto since 2017 and last year went "full-time". I've very successful in identifying early projects but have had less luck with day trading (very different as you know.) I was wondering if you had any tips for finding employment at Messari. It would be a dream to continue researching Blockchain. I've applied about 2 weeks ago through their website, but haven't heard anything back. Thanks in advance!
I really appreciate your Substack posts btw!