The Metaverse, however it is defined, will require the talents and vision of countless   developers.(Photo by Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
I spent most of my week at the AWE (Augmented World Expo) conference in Santa Clara, CA trying to get more updated information on the subject of VR, XR, and AR. AWE has emerged as one of the premier shows on XR and after it was only a virtual event last year, over 3000 people came to Santa Clara from many parts of the world to talk about the topic and learn what was new in terms of the current and future state of XR.
Besides being a significant industry event on VR, XR and AR, it was also the largest in-person event held in Silicon Valley since the Covid lockdown began in March of 2020. The leadership of AWE did a great job of handling the Covid related health requirements and protocols. Before an attendee could even enter the Santa Clara Convention Center, one would have to go to a health check-in desk and present proof of vaccination card before they could enter into the registration area. They were then given a blue wrist band that signified their vax card was checked and were now free to roam the event. Also, everyone had to wear a mask since this rule is still enforced in this part of California. Surprisingly, I heard no complaints about the vaccine demand and saw no resistance to wearing masks. This is important for other in-person event coordinators who want to have in-person events in the Covid era.
The success of how the AWE show organizers kept people safe is a real model that others should follow. For me, it proved I could attend a trade show safely if they had these health protocols in place. While I had been resisting going to CES at first due to health concerns, I am now planning to attend the show in January since they are using the same health security measures for all attendees.
Since AWE took place two weeks after Mark Zuckerberg’s Metaverse reveal, this was a major topic at the show.
I have been going to AWE for about 10 years and from the beginning, this show has had more of an AR perspective on the future of immersive technology. Many of the opening keynotes who had panelists asked how each one might describe their view of the Metaverse. Their answers were revealing since all had different takes on the subject. There was not a lot of consistency in their various definitions except in one major area.
Almost all said that they had trouble buying into Mark Zuckerberg’s VR vision in which one is enclosed in a VR headset and VR world. They agree with him that creating a 3D immersive Metaverse is on the right path but they tend to lean towards a Metaverse that uses mixed reality or XR headsets instead of the way most VR headsets today block out the real world from the virtual world.
Indeed, since this conference has a great focus on AR given its name and history, a lot of the conference content and exhibits were more AR-related and less focused on VR. The show also had a strong emphasis on providing sessions and special content for developers. I went to a couple of developer sessions and it became clear to me that from a platform standpoint, the trend going forward is to create around platforms that are open instead of closed. I asked some developers if they plan to support Meta’s VR platform and most pointed out that given that Facebook/Meta will spend $10 billion to create their version of the Metaverse, most were willing to take money from Facebook to support it.
On the other hand, most developers want to work on platforms that are open and work across devices.
The one big announcement the got their attention came from 8th Wall, which used their main stage session to launch its Reality Engine, which enables web-based augmented reality (WebAR) experiences to immediately work across most devices, including iOS and Android smartphones, tablets, computers and AR and VR headsets.
This new development platform is important for another reason; It acknowledges that XR and AR can be used beyond headsets. AR apps today run on smartphones and tablets and WebXR, will bring XR and AR apps to personal computers, too. Bringing AR apps to all types of devices will drive AR into the mainstream faster. However, they and others in leadership in the field of XR and AR agree that the most immersive experiences will be best when used on some form of XR or AR goggles or glasses in the future. This concept of write-once-deploy everywhere was a huge hit with developers and their booth was mobbed by people wanting to learn more about this new software development platform.
While the show had a lot of focus on the Metaverse, it became pretty clear to me that this idea and concept is a work in progress. It will take a collective effort of many companies and thousands of engineers over time, to craft the kinds of virtual worlds that will drive what may be many different metaverses in the future.
As I spoke with many speakers and attendees at the show to get their definition of the metaverse, there was one answer that I got from a person I had lunch with one day. He said that he believes that the, “…metaverse will be the place where you store your digital self.” I agree and that may be one of the definitions to describe the metaverse that has staying power.

I have been recognized as one of the leading industry consultants, analysts and futurists, covering the field of personal computers and consumer technology. I have been

I have been recognized as one of the leading industry consultants, analysts and futurists, covering the field of personal computers and consumer technology. I have been with Creative Strategies since 1981 and have served as a consultant to most of the leading hardware and software vendors in the industry including IBM, Apple, Xerox, Hewlett Packard/Compaq, Dell, AT&T, Microsoft, Sony, Panasonic, Intel, Qualcomm, AMD, nVidia, Polaroid, Lotus, Epson, Toshiba and numerous others. My articles and/or analysis have appeared in USA Today, Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Time and Newsweek magazines, BusinessWeek and most of the leading business and trade publications. I have appeared as a business analyst commenting on the tech industry on all of the major television networks and was a frequent guest on PBS’ The Computer Chronicles. I have been a columnist for US computer industry publications such as PC Week and Computer Reseller News and wrote for ABCNEWS.COM for two years and Mobile Computing for 10 years. I was also a tech columnist for Time Magazine’s Tech section for 5 years. My columns currently appear in Fast Company, Recode, PC Magazine, Forbes and the online publication: www.techpinions.com. My columns and analyses are syndicated in over 55 countries. Further History I am known as a concise, futuristic analyst, credited with predicting the desktop publishing revolution three years before it hit the market, and identifying multimedia as a major trend in written reports as early as 1986. My writing and analysis have been at the forefront of the digital revolution and I am considered one of the leading experts in the field of technology adoption cycles. I have also spoken at many business school programs about marketing to consumers. I have authored major industry studies on PC, portable computing, pen-based computing, desktop publishing, multimedia computing and the digital home. Currently, I serve on multiple conference advisory boards and am a frequent featured speaker at computer conferences worldwide. I also serve on technology advisory councils for IBM/Lenovo, Dell, and on specialty councils for three large semiconductor companies.

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