Given the metaverse’s “embodied” aspects (credit: Zuckerberg), it will be much more dimensional including sensory immersion. That inherently means it should be more human-centric than today’s web. How will that come together in the coming years? Thought leaders in Europe are mapping out the evolutionary path.

Key Takeaways

Here are a few key messages or insights that we gleaned from this session.

• Cities in the EU are more focused on the time it takes to walk to local commerce outcomes, rather than pure distance. Everything including shopping, entertainment, and healthcare is ideally within a 15-minute Walk
• Local means a great deal in the EU, both from an economic perspective and an ecological perspective.
  The concept of a localverse is gaining traction since one cannot detach themselves from the real world. That makes the metaverse inherently a “local” phenomenon.
• The on-demand economy, including delivery in less than 30 minutes is very competitive in the EU. But it requires more investment to sustain and its future, which is still uncertain. Leading players today include Lieferando, Wolt, Gorillas, and Fink.
• Mapping is also a key component in all of the above. This includes Google-esque mapping initiatives including adding algorithmic mapping results that weigh factors like safety. For example, well-lit walking routes at night make women feel safer. And language support is additive given refugee influxes in certain areas of Europe.

Place 2022: The Human Centric Metaverse

Media and tech evolution continues to accelerate. How will today’s digital media landscape look in the age of the real-world metaverse?

Eva Balmaks, Winkt