Perspective
Traveling between worlds in the metaverse
5-MINUTE READ
In brief
- The next wave of technology disruption driving the future is here, bringing new technologies and worlds of experiences.
- Over the next decade, ambitious travel players will shape new physical and digital realities and transform their businesses.
- Travel companies need to prepare now to understand how these emerging technologies are critical for future growth and competitiveness.
- How can travel companies successfully navigate uncertainty about the future, with blurred boundaries between humans and machines?
Welcome to the “Metaverse Continuum”
The metaverse is evolving the next generation of the internet technologies and creating boundaryless opportunities. Think of it as a continuum, spanning the spectrum of digitally enhanced worlds, realities and business models.
Expect to see it touch all facets of every business, from consumer to worker and across the enterprise; from reality to virtual and back; from 2D to 3D; and from cloud and AI to extended reality, blockchain, digital twins, edge technologies and beyond. In 2022, this way of life seems surreal, but the Metaverse Continuum is on its way and companies need to prepare now.
Next-generation traveler experience
The Metaverse Continuum enables people to immerse themselves within a universal shared experience that connects our real world to a fully virtual one—and everything in between.
The Metaverse Continuum is already transforming travel companies in five ways, changing...
- How travel companies interact with customers
- How work is done
- Which services travel companies offer
- How they make and distribute them
- How they operate their organizations
Travel Technology Vision 2022 trends
In the Travel Technology Vision 2022 report, we explore how today’s technology innovations are becoming the building blocks of our collective future. These four trends investigate the entire continuum, from the virtual to the physical, across humans and machines alike, identifying where ambitious travel companies can find rich opportunities by uprooting themselves from today and planting themselves firmly in the future.
1.
WebMe: The internet is being reimagined as metaverse, and Web3 efforts transform the underpinning and operation of the virtual world.
2.
The Programmable World: Control, customization and automation are being immersed into the world around us, making the physical as programmable as the digital.
3.
The Unreal: As AI-generated data and synthetic content convincingly mimic what is “real,” authenticity is the new north star.
4.
Computing the Impossible: A new generation of computers is solving some of the world’s most intractable problems leading to one of the biggest technological disruptions of our time.
RELATED: Why the metaverse (really) matters for travel.
Now is the time to shape the future of travel technology
We are at a crossroads. Not only because there are new technologies to master, but rather that competition in the next decade will require much more than technical skills and innovative strength. Travel companies will need a truly competitive vision. A clear vision of what the future worlds will be like and a vision of where the travel business needs to go to thrive. Technology is pointing us in the right direction. Everything else is in your hands.
The metaverse continuum is waiting for you.