Investing in the Metaverse is the Next Big Move for Investors and Industry Leaders

The advent of blockchain technology and cryptocurrency has given rise to an entirely new age of investing. Investors are now putting their money in virtual/digital assets versus traditional, physical banks. Today, investors are considering the virtual world existing outside the analog one that we currently live in. This new frontier is known as the Metaverse, and it is gradually rising to be the next big thing in investing.

The Metaverse can be seen as an integration of virtual shared space, the collection of all virtual worlds. Although the Metaverse contains derivatives of our physical world, it is completely different from augmented reality. It comprises shared 3D virtual spaces connected to a perceived virtual universe.

Web 3.0 is the progenitor of the Metaverse, and the goal is to mimic the physical world providing the same experiences of interaction, socialization, and commerce, just like in our daily lives in "real life." As Matthew Ball, the former head of content at Amazon, stated in his essays, "The Metaverse is a persistent, synchronous and live universe that spans both the digital and physical worlds with total inclusion. It is a fully functioning economy with unprecedented interoperability and it is populated by content and experience."

There are a number of organizations and industry players championing the Metaverse movement. However, Realm appears to be at the forefront of the Metaverse buzz.

Realm is a cross-chain, open-source, community-driven and blockchain-based platform for players, creators and collectors. The platform allows both creators and collectors to fully express themselves and their artistic vision in its purest form — their own special and magical virtual realm.

Leveraging the Realm platform, users can create distinct and customizable virtual ecosystems. In these virtual ecosystems, known as realms, users can host their NFTs, own genetically encoded living NFT pets, and explore other realms using augmented reality (AR). Users can also mint collectible NFTix to grant access to events in their realms and use live audio streaming to connect with their friends and fans. The combination of the visual, audio, and gamification, is what sets Realm apart from others in the Metaverse movement and is making them a leader in the space.

The fact that the Metaverse frontier is new and relatively untested territory is a key motivation for investors and industry players looking to be part of the next big movement. As history has shown: the early birds in the major technological advancements made huge gains, and the trajectory of activities around the Metaverse is an indication that the future is promising for this new frontier. For example, more than $400 million has gone into the NFT market and more than $40 million is spent every month on NFTs. The most expensive NFT (The Beetle art) was auctioned at $69 million a few months back. There are also whispers that NFTs will become the currency of the Metaverse.

Tech giants like Facebook are among the leading organizations working to have an online Metaverse. According to a BBC report, Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Facebook, wants to transform the social platform into a Metaverse within the next five years. Social and historical proof of these plays have hinted to investors where bets should be made. The Metaverse is the next big bet.

With the buzz happening around the Metaverse in recent weeks, and the growing interest from major industry leaders, investing in Metaverse will certainly be on the rise. Becoming a pioneer in new eras of the Internet has paid off for many; think about the kids now sitting on their $4 million worth of Bitcoin. As it stands, the Metaverse is shaping up to be the next big wave and investors are already dipping their toes into the water to make sure they get a piece of the movement.