In an interview with Facebook’s founder, Mark Zuckerberg stated that the company would transition into a metaverse company within the next five years, and the initiative has already been launched internally. According to him, the most challenging yet fascinating aspect of the metaverse is how to integrate a vast array of disparate elements seamlessly, enabling interaction and communication within the metaverse space to converge into a grander vision. There is no clear blueprint for building and realizing the metaverse. Facebook may introduce numerous measures, which may appear complex and extensive, but the overarching goal is to make the metaverse a reality—ultimately creating an internet where people can fully immerse themselves.
In 1992, Neal Stephenson introduced the concept of a virtual space called the "Metaverse" in his novel Snow Crash, where machines project images onto human display terminals, and sound is delivered through headphones or speakers. This fictional space, known as the "Metaverse," allows each individual to exist as a "software" or program, serving as a composite of human activity within it—somewhat reminiscent of The Matrix's worldview. On March 10, 2021, the term "Metaverse" was first mentioned in the IPO filing of the gaming company Roblox, translated as "元宇宙" (metaverse), sparking the imagination of capital and markets regarding its potential.
Returning to Facebook, from its earlier Libra project to the current metaverse ambitions, the scale of its vision is evident given its 2.7 billion users. Its metaverse aims to be a super-metaverse encompassing the entire planet, achieving the goal of a parallel universe where everyone is "inside." So, what is Zuckerberg’s company doing? According to reports, Facebook is attempting to build such a metaverse through its Oculus division, which produces the Quest headset. However, the headset lacks disruptive innovation and serves merely as a hardware "box" integrating existing technologies.
In reality, companies like Facebook, Microsoft, Apple, NVIDIA, and Roblox are currently participating in the metaverse race from different angles—computing platforms, hardware terminals, content creation, and production tools. Like Tencent in China, Facebook possesses a massive user base and social network, but it may not be the most direct gateway to the metaverse. Thus, while these giants strengthen their competitive advantages in the metaverse, they also expand their investment reach as far as possible. Yet, it remains doubtful whether any single company, platform, or organization can fully encompass the entirety of the metaverse.
Renowned VC Matthew Ball once attempted to define the true meaning of the metaverse: it represents a persistent, real-time virtual world where an unlimited number of people can participate simultaneously. It will feature a fully functional economy spanning physical and digital realms, offering unprecedented interoperability where data, digital items, content, and IP can all operate seamlessly. Many individuals and companies will contribute content, stores, and experiences to enrich it. The metaverse will not be operated by a single entity but by numerous decentralized participants. However, judging by Zuckerberg’s vision for a 2.7 billion-user metaverse, it lacks disruptive innovation, a clear path to decentralized operation, or full open-source capability—as seen in Facebook’s earlier Libra project, which made it a regulatory target.
