If you’ve been hearing everyone talk about Metaverse in conversations and on social media, then trust us you are not alone. And if you don’t know what Metaverse is and intricate concepts like AI, Blockchain, Cryptocurrencies, and Metaverse confuse you, even then you’re not alone. Metaverse is something that has taken over the virtual reality world by storm. And still, not many people can tell what exactly is metaverse.
Internet. Metaverse. Internet. Metaverse.
The confusion is too much to handle. What is going on?
What is Metaverse? Is it a joke? Is it a meme format? Is it something like Minecraft? Or is it just another version of Zoom where people hang out together? Well, it is safe to say that the Metaverse and the Internet are connected. And ever since Facebook rebranded as Meta, Metaverse has become a hot topic of discussion.
You cannot clearly define Metaverse because it means different things to different people based on their experience. However, it’s not their fault because the lines between reality and the virtual world have been blurred beyond recognition. So, it’s not wrong to say that the Metaverse is just an evolution of the Internet and is a combination of online spaces where people can play, work, and socialize as avatars.
But where has this new word come from all of a sudden and how has it taken over everyone’s life?
Let’s find out!
The metaverse is a term that can be collectively used to describe a group or collection of virtual worlds. But then, what are virtual worlds, and are they the same as the real world? No, they are not even close to real, rather they exist only in augmented reality and virtual reality applications & games and everything happens virtually over there.
For instance, you can build a house in the virtual world, you can take your metaverse avatar to a gathering in the virtual gathering simulator, and then head to see your virtual friends and family. Apart from games, you can even attend your office meetings and complete your workouts in the metaverse without leaving your home.
People are even getting married in the metaverse!!!
In the metaverse (or virtual reality), all software and applications (that are specifically designed for the Metaverse) are connected to a network. You create an avatar for yourself and it represents you wherever you go. Metaverse is almost like going inside the internet.
So, why should you care about the metaverse? What is so great about it? Well, for starters, it can bring the offline and online worlds together. And that can create a lot of feasibility for mankind. Imagine trying your clothes online or going for a test drive virtually and then buying the stuff in reality.
However, it is difficult to predict right now what exactly Metaverse will be used for in the future since this is just the start of it. But no matter what people say, it is still a concept under process even for highly-advanced companies.
There has been a lot of gossiping about Metaverse and how it might take over social media in the future. But to what extent is it true or can it even be done?
Well, 2021 was the year of technological advancements. Many companies and businesses poured their money and resources into the metaverse. Many big platforms and brands like Facebook (now Meta) and Nike, respectively, also invested massive amounts of money and resources into the metaverse. So, with influential brands trying out the virtual reality of Metaverse, it might become the future of social media.
Metaverse is still a risky area to venture in, as the majority of people still believe. Many companies and businesses are still testing the waters when it comes to virtual reality. And even though many people are still unsure and skeptical about Metaverse and how it might just be a bigger and more sophisticated version of Facebook and its social environment, the timing of Metaverse’s mainstream popularity is perfect. Technologies like Blockchain, Metaverse, and Cryptocurrency are becoming increasingly popular worldwide. So much so that gaming universes like Minecraft and Fortnight have started investing in them.
So, have you been thinking of taking interest in the Metaverse and trying it out? Then you should do that before it is too late.
Good Luck!
Blockchain in FinanceIt won’t be wrong if I say the honeymoon period between blockchain and fintech has divulged a new morphism of financial technology that the world has never seen before. Yes, it is very true that the new financial technology has been on the horizon for a few years now, but we must not forget that there is always uncertainty associated with new technologies. They can either completely revamp the existing systems or make no effect at all. In this article, we’ll probe into the blockchain and know what the hype all about is.
It would be too early to say if the blockchain has set off to the revamping of the financial sector or not but it has reinvigorated the system for sure. How has blockchain done it? The prevailing system, FIAT currency, is an epitome of a centralized system while the modus operandi behind the blockchain is a distributed database that is highly immutable, contains open-source protocols, and accessible by all users.
The blockchain has tried to provide the fountain of youth to the industrial-era finances and the third-parties residing between the business and the customer are pulverized. As a blockchain development company in the USA, We have noticed the biggest proposed change of blockchain in the financial sector is the vanishing of the private ledgers of the third-companies, hence the accretion of money in complex financial use cases is also increased.
But, the antidote was not antidoted, rather proved to be venom. Why? Did everything seem so impeccable about it? How even this idea can fail?
The sole problem with this idea is that everything was so impeccable like smooth transactions without trusted third parties, but it didn’t work out, at least for now. The recent brutal failure of some Defi (decentralized financial) applications likes has given it a serious setback to the smooth emergence of this technology, who knows it may even act as the final nail in the coffin? It is loaded with a lot of errs, and these err have lowered its feasibility considerably.
It has a major philosophical err and multifarious technological mistakes like high vulnerability to hackers, human errors in codes, non-changeable smart contracts, no credible investor. Etherum, a leading Defi company had been under the storm due to a box protocol blunder, a blunder in the algorithm allowed the hackers to steal the money. It showed that the accomplishment of the dream of transparent financial transactions is not so transparent.
The philosophical err is to be too utopian about transparent transactions. The peer-to-peer transactions cannot go as smoothly as mustered by the innovators behind Defi. It will only promote anarchy of the system and leave the financial system an orphan. Some kind of veteran financial third-party would be needed to demarcate the boundaries between the dos and don’ts of the peer-to-peer transactions so that the original idea of getting transparent transactions can be achieved.
The recent utterings in the virtual conference of Unitize Blockchain have been recently denied by Apple Inc. As Coinbase, a cryptocurrency based mobile application is facing tremors in getting access to the apple store. Apple has exactly pinpointed the reasons why it cannot support the app, unfortunately, these reasons happen to be the core on which the edifice of the Defi resides i.e. 1) The ability to earn money using cryptocurrency 2) The ability to access device applications.
Summing Up
The tech innovators usually commit a fallacy when they try to discern it between the horse of the long race or just another fad. The truth is, it is not in the hands of the tech experts to decide the fate of blockchain and defi apps. Defi applications are challenging the entire hierarchy of financial institutes. It is not simply a fintech innovation rather apolitical in the sense it has the potential to destabilize the economies of many countries. That is the only reason, it has not gained the momentum it deserves to have. The immigration of cryptocurrency innovators from America to Europe and Asia is another fact that further strengthens the argument established by me. It has the potential to implement the digital currency sponsored by China just the way the Chinese Tang dynasty did in the 7th century. And guess what? Capitalist America does not want it. Apple’s decision not to lend her Apple store for the cryptocurrency-based apps further validates the reluctance of worldwide banks to shift to Defi applications.
Top 10 Blockchain TrendsBlockchain is the new most talked about technology in the market right now, as the word suggests blockchain is associated with how the system stores data. Data is sent and dealt with in the form of blocks and then linked together to make chains. Blockchain tech has the potential to change the industry and create opportunities in the existing industry: education, finance, etc.
The most visible and known example of blockchain is bitcoin where companies like Google, Sachs, and visas are adopting the new trends too.
Since the technology is making its way towards the future, there are several trends that will follow it or come to the market.
A third-party cloud-based service provides by blockchain that gives the customers an opportunity to use cloud-based solutions which include: smart contracts, decentralized blockchain applications (Dapps), and other various relevant functions on the blockchain network that can work without any blockchain-based infrastructural setup. The services provided by blockchain are fast, secure and error-free and many organizations as Amazon and Microsoft are constantly shaping the upcoming applications of blockchain. The types of blockchain networks that exist are Private, Public, Federated or Hybrid.
Among the types of blockchain, federated blockchain is the latest and is expected to blossom in the future. They’re faster with higher scalability and, therefore can provide more privacy of transactions than the other three blockchain types. With that, it also provides a more customizable look which will no doubt attract more customers in the coming years.
Stable coins have played an important role in the market since the creation of tether and they also provide stability which the bitcoins do not. In 202, it is expected that blockchain-based stablecoins will transition from the world of crypto to the world of traditional finance. Huge corporations like Facebook, Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) and JP Morgan are recognizing the potential of blockchain stable coins and are already bringing it into use.
like privacy violation scandals have always been a serious issue in the social media world, blockchain can have a major effect on it and help reduce it. With that, it can also help maintain data integrity. The use of blockchain in social media can provide the creator full access and secure control over its own creation eliminating the risk of manipulation.
Blockchain has the ability to share relevant information across multiple networks of blockchain since the entire world now works on data blockchain makes it easier and a secure way to help the public, senders, and receivers to have better access over it.
We have already established how big of a part blockchain plays in cryptocurrency, it’s more than a 70% chance that the financial and economic sector will be willing to adopt blockchain services because of the benefits it brings i.e. assure faster and secured transactions at comparatively low costs.
It is also believed that by the end of 2020, the government will also be coming on board with the whole idea of blockchain. Since it has already been adopted and pretty used in the finance and economics sector, the blockchain implementation of digital currencies will improve the data management capacities of government agencies.
To combat the IoT network hacking, the network operators will be combining IoT with blockchain technology in 2020 as the existing centralized architecture of IoT is susceptible to hacking. Blockchain offers new IoT security because of the inherent decentralized and transparent nature of blockchain technology. Due to this reason, The International Data Corporation (IDC) expects that 20 % of IoT deployments will be implemented in the blockchain services by the year 2020.
the implementation and usage of AI are not hidden, it’s used everywhere in this current world. Being the technology that it is, it’s expected that AI when integrated with blockchain can lead to pretty useful new inventions and increase its efficiency.
Blockchain being the new technology that is merging, the number of blockchain developers are less. Though it can only change if enough new developers are given a chance and with the increase in demands the rate of it is pretty high too. It’s currently also the new most leaned and evolving skill out there.
Smart Contracts and BlockchainA blockchain is a database that is shared across a network of computers. It is a shared, distributed ledger on which transactions are digitally recorded.
What are smart contracts?
A smart contract is similar to contracts in the physical world, the only difference is they’re digital and are represented by a tiny computer program stored inside a blockchain. In simpler words, a smart contract is a software that stores rules for negotiating the terms of an agreement, automatically verifies fulfillment, and then executes the agreed terms.
The main idea of a smart contract is to eliminate the reliance of a third party when it comes to business relations.
Smart contracts used by blockchain
Blockchain has formed a backbone for a revolutionary cryptocurrency and is bringing change in many sectors being used in daily life I.e. industries including logistics, web security, and even trade finance, etc. However, nowhere is this advance more evident than its growing function as an innovative payment solution. One of the key pillars driving this rapid adoption is the embrace of smart contracts.
The smart contract has been growing and it owes its success to its two pillars: automation and the cost savings it brings. While there are plenty of examples of smart contracts implemented within different blockchain networks and projects, the most notable remains Bitcoin and Ethereum.
Bitcoin
Bitcoin is known for cryptocurrency but its protocol can be used to create a smart contract, the programming language bitcoin provides, allows or custom smart contracts like multi-signature accounts, payment channels, escrows, and time locks.
Ethereum
Ethereum is the most prominent smart contract framework, created and designed especially to support smart contracts. This decentralized platform runs smart contracts that are safe from fraud, censorship, and third-party interference. The Ethereum blockchain database stores transactions between people, transactions involving smart contracts, and their source code.
Blockchain is already impacting businesses and bringing revolution every day; and by inheriting blockchain properties, smart contracts offer immutability and distributed storage which is what helps them stand out in the crowd. Immutability and distributed storage help the smart contract to become secure and credible means for business transactions and agreements.
Blockchain Impacting RoboticsBlockchain technology was first introduced by Satoshi Nakamoto alongside the cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Both have grown in terms of adoption, value, and usage, but the value of blockchain is not only to hold cryptocurrencies but to allow the integration of a huge number of systems over the same platform in a decentralized and secure way. At the rate that technology is changing it’s always a question in mind, which technology will make it, or which one is just a fad?
It’s always challenging to predict that but at this point, experts believe robotics, artificial intelligence, and blockchain would be the leaders and influence the ecosystem. Robotics is expected to play a huge role in changing industries with their heterogeneous characteristics, it seems that they will be ideal for many future applications. Where AI and blockchain are expected to bring convenience and efficiency too.
The two solutions that blockchain brings with itself when it comes to robotics does it:
1- security
2- decentralization
as many of the systems have problems of trust and data integrity, blockchain can provide reliable peer-to-peer communication with security measures over a trustless network. Another advantage of this integration is the possibility to make distributed decisions since blockchain can ensure that all participants of a decentralized network share identical views of the world. This assurance can allow the system to reach an agreement over the whole network and to have global collaboration between the robots.
What is swarm robotics and what’s its significance?
Swarm robotics is an emerging field, which consists of a large group of simple physical robots. This technology is being used for precision farming, medical transport, and entertainment industry applications. Security in these apps is still a matter of concern even though they’re growing fast, the fact that these applications are highly based upon complex information structures and complicated characteristics make the issue of security even crucial.
Knowing the advantage that blockchain provides when it comes to security, this is where it comes to use proving credible solutions. By using advanced encryption techniques such as cryptographic digital signatures and cryptographically secure public-key cryptography, blockchain provides optimum security for data across shared channels. Accessibility of the information is controlled by the specific private key available to a robot.
Implementation of blockchain can allow robots to work and operate in different environments.
In conclusion, blockchain is itself an emerging technology making its way towards the future and its global impact is yet to be clearly understood. The integration of services with the blockchain, especially robotics, is still in an early prototype stage. But when a great technology like blockchain gets combined with robotics, the operations get more autonomous secure, flexible and even profitable. Especially when it comes to swarm robotics, it provides an innovative infrastructure that ensures the safety and its success since swarm robotics is increasingly being integrated into various fields across industries.