Similar to its dominance in tourism, technology, business, and infrastructure, Dubai also dominates the Metaverse. Dubai cleared the path for the rest of the globe to enter the Metaverse realm by committing substantial resources and focusing on the field. Over the past few weeks, Dubai has shifted its focus to metaverse-related activities, and the globe is still in awe of what Dubai has demonstrated. Not only did the city host the World Metaverse Show and the Dubai Metaverse Assembly, but also GITEX, which displayed the technology in all its grandeur and made significant announcements.
The Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has become the first local government agency to offer services via the new technology that some have called the future of how people will interact on the internet by launching its ‘DEWAVerse‘ platform as Dubai accelerates its’metaverse strategy’ with each passing day. DEWA’s CEO, His Excellency Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer
It is stated that “The Move strengthens the Dubai Metaverse Strategy,” which “aims to make Dubai one of the world’s top 10 metaverse economies and a worldwide hub for the metaverse community.”
DEWA Workplace is a part of DEWAVerse that lets users interact with its buildings and have meetings in a virtual setting. Users can have virtual brainstorming sessions in the DEWA Future Lab, while new hires can get acquainted with the company’s goals and values in the DEWA Onboarding platform.
Until then, let’s take a step back from the Dubai strategy that propelled them to the top of the Metaverse. As a first order of business, we’d like to address the most fundamental concern;
What is the Metaverse?
In his own words, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has defined the metaverse as “an embodied internet where you’re in the experience, not simply looking at it.” It can also be thought of as a collaborative online environment that is interactive, immersive, and hyper-realistic. Using technologies like AR/VR, users can build an avatar and enter the metaverse. Online games like Fortnite and Roblox, in which players assume the role of an avatar in their interactions with other players, are a simple example of the metaverse.
Using more advanced terminology, the metaverse is the coming together of technologies like AR, VR, cryptocurrencies, the IoT, 5G internet, 3D modelling, AI, cybersecurity, and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
New businesses are opening every day to take advantage of the metaverse, and many existing organizations have increased their investments in these areas. Mini-crypto centers like Dubai and Singapore have emerged as a result of this, as have digital asset management companies, 3D modelling studios, and AI start-ups.
How Dubai Is Excelling in Metaverse?
Many of these questions were addressed at the World Metaverse Show, where various estimations of when the metaverse will reach its full potential were offered. The chief information officer (CIO) of a company called Bizverse, which plans to create a metaverse for commercial activities, has predicted that the concept will become a reality within the next three years, with Facebook parent company Meta serving as the catalyst.
It would take “some five to ten years till we see really working projects that are working inside the metaverse,” Zen Zijlstra, Portfolio Analyst at Hatchworks, told Business Recorder.
However, Ibentos Co-Founder and CEO Harpreet Bhatia is more upbeat. His firm facilitates the hosting of metaverse-based brand experiences for other businesses. In his mind, the metaverse is more than simply a child’s cartoon imagination. He elaborates on the idea by saying;
I mean, it’s already started, right? Several companies, including Meta, have already released products for sale in the Oculus shop. You may just download the apps for your Oculus and start using it right away.
How can Metaverse enhance Tourism?
Binh Dang stated that the “teleport function” intrigues him the most about the metaverse.
“In reality, if you wish to travel to another nation, you must complete a number of procedures, such as obtaining a visa, making reservations, etc. But in the metaverse, you can instantly teleport to the desired location and experience it before deciding to travel there.”
According to Bhatia, if you wish to visit Niagara Falls in Canada, you may do it by seeing a video or photograph and then purchasing a ticket. Alternately, why not first experience it in the metaverse? If that is something that interests you, you should book it, and when you see it on the Oculus, believe me, that is something that words cannot describe. It’s completely immersive. You will have a sense of presence. The metaverse, according to Zijlstra, is the ideal means to “escape reality.”
“If I wanted to visit Dubai, for instance, I could move within the metaverse and see the city.” There are so many things that could add value to people’s lives, such as simulations that allow doctors to practise surgery.
Other changes Several significant announcements were made at GITEX, one of the largest technology fairs in the world, hosted in Dubai. Sharjah Commerce and Tourist Development Authority has established Sharjahverse, a tourism platform in the metaverse.
Dubai Airport Freezone (DAFZ) has established METADAFZ, a virtual platform that will allow clients from around the world to conduct meetings. Thumbay Group stated that it is constructing a fully functional virtual hospital in the metaverse to provide patients with an immersive healthcare experience. The metaverse hospital intends to deliver state-of-the-art healthcare, such as many clinicians consulting on a case in a virtual clinic and first aid and preventive health programmes utilising AR/VR and AI. The first phase of the project is anticipated to launch by the end of the year. Additionally, Medcare Hospitals & Medical Centers have launched their first hospital in the metaverse.
There’s more. Sensorium, the startup behind the Sensorium Galaxy metaverse, has announced the opening of new offices in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. President and CEO Vladimir Kedrinsky stated during the ceremony:
Dubai is rapidly becoming a global hotspot for metaverse and Web3 enterprises. By having a local presence in Dubai, Sensorium will be able to interact more closely with major players in the space and develop long-lasting relationships in the MENA region. Microsoft demonstrated at the Dubai Metaverse Assembly held at the end of September how immersive technology can reduce the skills gap, facilitate the Fourth Industrial Revolution, promote augmented reality-enabled workplaces, and enhance worker safety. Binance connected users to the advancement of gaming and metaverse money, whereas Metamall offered retail and real estate options through a virtual lens, such as test tokens and personalized avatars.
The Dubai Metaverse Assembly is the first event of its sort since the Dubai Metaverse Strategy was adopted in July by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. The strategy intends to increase Dubai’s GDP by $4 billion, create 40,000 virtual employment by 2030, and recruit 1,000 businesses specialised in blockchain and metaverse technologies in order to make Dubai one of the top 10 metaverse economies in the world.
