Enterprise solutions and the metaverse

Blockchain: a digital ledger 

Blockchain is another core metaverse technology that will have a broad impact. In fact, business directory Crunchbase lists more than 13,000 companies that are building blockchain-based products and services. Here at Wolters Kluwer, we’ve released a Blockchain-based bank confirmation solution, CCH Axcess Validate, for external auditors, that uses a patented Blockchain-based algorithm to exchange requests and replies between the parties, providing a certified audit trail showing proof of all interactions and identities of the involved parties. 

Although known mainly as the underpinning of cryptocurrencies, blockchain has many other uses. Firstly, it's a secure, anonymous, distributed database that can enable direct transactions between buyers and sellers without intermediaries like real estate agents, mortgage brokers, and banks. It also allows identity to become a form of currency so customers can buy and sell products and services based, in part, on the information they choose to disclose. Need an example? Read about one of the “world’s first web3 nonprofits.”  

COVID-19 has played a role in accelerating blockchain development, too. The pandemic forced knowledge workers to find new ways to collaborate, prospect, sell, and even socialize without commutes, airplanes, or physical proximity. Many people will never return to the office full time, so enabling interactions and workflows in new ways will be a core functionality of enterprise solutions in the metaverse. 

Digital Twins

In some ways, the metaverse is already here. For example, in a real estate context, architects, space planners, and interior designers are using VR to walk through computerized renderings of structures, make adjustments, and test layouts. Doctors are now performing surgeries from thousands of miles away by directing on-site assistants or even manipulating robotic tools directly. Teenagers are comfortable engaging with each other in 3D games, and purchasing and modeling clothes on their avatars. 

Companies in manufacturing and construction businesses are using "digital twins," which are computer-generated models that exactly match the characteristics of physical ones. They let architects and designers build and test everything from motorcycles to power plants. They can test the impact of their decisions on computerized twins instantly and at nearly no cost. "Digital twins instantly double productivity," Tyrrell said. This has significant implications for the future of the user-customer experience for business and developers. 

Once a computerized model of an object or place is created, it can be shared, copied, and opened to anyone. That means that instead of getting on a plane and flying to Beijing to inspect office space, an executive can walk through an exact digital replica and interact with the local agent in real time, even if they're thousands of miles apart. "One important aspect of the metaverse is creating a detailed replication of the physical world in 3D," Tyrrell said. 

Evolving user experiences 

The metaverse has the potential to fundamentally change key relationships- between customers, brands, employees and the like. The pandemic revealed that videoconference sessions with customers can be nearly as valuable as face-to-face meetings. In the metaverse, salespeople will "meet" customers in their virtual offices, give sales presentations, and demonstrate products. 

Customers are already attending conferences in cyberspace and interacting with exhibitors and other attendees as if they were physically inside a convention center. Simulation classrooms already emulate their real-world counterparts, with students raising their hands to speak to the instructor and collaborating screen-to-screen in small groups. Prospective home buyers can already walk-through virtual replicas of properties for sale and even test different furniture layouts and color schemes. It's even conceivable that the customary round of golf with the customer could be conducted in cyberspace. Advertising will also become more customized and immersive. 

The future is now 

Although it will take time for the metaverse to evolve, Tyrrell recommends becoming familiar with these underlying technologies like AR and VR, blockchain, and replicated digital systems (or a digital twin) now. You might even consider conducting some low-impact tasks like staff meetings and training sessions using VR. "Look at where it can be used in your business," he said. "If you're in advertising, retail, or content development, pay particular attention." 

With blockchain, an easy way to experiment is to register some digital assets you own — such as product documentation and sales collateral — as non-fungible tokens (NFTs). You can then experiment with granting permissions, transferring ownership, and even selling them on an NFT exchange. This will help you understand how metaverse enterprise solutions built on blockchain can enable secure transactions involving digital properties. 

Lastly, follow what companies are doing (like collaborations between Meta, Microsoft and Accenture), as some have made huge investments in the metaverse enterprise space and updates appear almost daily. 

The arrival of the metaverse is more likely to be a gradual transformation than a big bang. "It's not clear that it will disrupt businesses entirely anytime soon, but for certain functions, such as training and 

meetings, this will be a new channel to engage with," Tyrrell said. "Ultimately, if you have no presence at all or haven't developed a strategy, that could be a challenge." 

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