Manjeet Rege, professor and chair of software engineering and data science at the University of St. Thomas and director of the Center for Applied Artificial Intelligence, spoke with TechTarget about the growing number of real-world use cases for the metaverse as immersive technologies rapidly advance. Rege explained how digital twins, AR-supported retail and large-scale virtual environments are already reshaping industries even as the fully realized metaverse remains in development.
From the article:
The promise and benefits of an interconnected virtual world – commonly labeled the “metaverse” are still highly anticipated.
However, the technologies that enable the metaverse – from AI to smart goggles – are advancing and bringing it closer to reality…
“Enterprise pilots in immersive training, use of digital twins for simulation and prototyping and AR-supported retail experiences continue to expand in manufacturing, infrastructure and retail,” said Manjeet Rege, professor and chairman of the department of software engineering and data science at the University of St. Thomas and director of its Center for Applied Artificial Intelligence. …
“Surging adoption of VR and AR headsets, the rollout of high-speed 5G, tokenized economies, and multibillion-dollar alliances between entertainment IP owners and game platforms are powering this ascent. Hardware still brings in most revenue, yet software and services now outpace it as creators monetize avatars, live events, and play-to-earn loops,” Mordor Intelligence wrote in releasing its figures.
According to Rege, “gaming platforms such as Roblox and Fortnite engage hundreds of millions of users monthly, far eclipsing enterprise metaverse pilots in terms of scale and revenue.”