Ask Help Desk: What you need to know about the future of working inside the metaverse

The evolution of work has left many people wondering about a buzzword that’s making its rounds in the tech-o-sphere: How will the metaverse play into the future of work?

With the help of some tech experts in the field, we’re answering your questions about the metaverse, its workplace applications and some of the issues that surround the virtual office.

Before we dive in, I’d like to remind readers that we’re here to tackle your toughest questions about tech, how it may affect your life and the implications on the workplace. So don’t be shy. Shoot us your questions, comments or concerns at yourhelpdesk@washpost.com.

That said, into the metaverse we go.

Q: What is the metaverse, and which companies are involved?

Generally speaking, the metaverse is a network of digital worlds that could include any combination of technologies from virtual reality to augmented reality to blockchain. But the definition widely varies.

Research firm Forrester defines the metaverse as a three-dimensional layer of the Internet that is interoperable. That means no one company owns the metaverse.

“We don’t believe the metaverse is here yet,” Forrester analyst J.P. Gownder said. “There is going to be a long time frame here — like a decade or longer — to create the full metaverse.”

But companies playing in the space say they’re already actively engaged in the metaverse or at least in metaverse-related technologies.

Last year, Microsoft rolled out Mesh for its workplace communications service, Teams. The feature combines mixed-reality capabilities and allows workers to collaborate via 3D avatars with access to Microsoft’s productivity tools. Similarly, Facebook unveiled its Horizon Workrooms app for the Oculus Quest 2 headsets. The app gives users digital avatars and allows them to host meetings and collaborate in a virtual world.

A number of smaller start-ups are also working on metaverse technologies. New York-based Spatial.io, for example, created a 3D collaboration platform that allows people to create avatars and meet in existing virtual rooms or build their own spaces. Magic Leap, based in Plantation, Fla., has been working on augmented reality headsets and applications for enterprises. And Menlo Park, Calif.-based Strivr has been helping companies like Bank of America and Walmart train employees in virtual reality.

Q: How are workers using it?

Metaverse-related technologies are being used in a few ways: to train workers on technical skills, to help them develop better communication skills and for collaboration purposes. But tech experts say ultimately, the tech is still immature and somewhat limited.

“It’s very, very early innings,” says Anthony Georgiades, co-founder of Pastel, a platform that provides NFT infrastructure, which includes metaverse applications. “I wouldn’t say anything is hype as much as it might be exuberance or an over expectation of how we can apply this tech today.”

Accenture employees have gathered and onboarded at their virtual office during the pandemic. And workers who speak to advisers at PricewaterhouseCoopers Hong Kong may soon be interacting in a virtual world called Sandbox, where PwC purchased virtual real estate.

Meanwhile, Walmart employees have used virtual reality to train for tasks like using its kiosks that allow for online order pickup. They also learn how to handle active shootings, which the company’s CEO, Doug McMillan, has previously said helped during the 2019 shooting at an El Paso store. Verizon associates have used virtual reality to prepare for complicated customer service calls. And as part of a Boeing training program, astronauts recently started using virtual reality for spaceflight preparations.

Jeremy Bailenson, founding director of Stanford University’s Virtual Human Interaction Lab and co-founder of virtual reality company Strivr, said the fact that companies like Walmart and Verizon have picked up its technology is proof of the demand for enterprise applications. Training is more memorable and time efficient in virtual reality, he said.

“When [VR] sticks in the workplace, it’s going to be because of training,” he said.

But beyond virtual reality training uses, the number of companies adopting metaverse-related technologies is relatively small, expert say.

“If the metaverse is going to [provide] an immersive meeting and office, it seems to make sense on paper,” said Jason Schloetzer, associate professor at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business. “But the practicality behind it is a heavy lift.”

Q: What are some of the biggest issues facing the metaverse?

There are a number of problems standing in the way of the mass adoption: bulkiness and price of VR headsets, privacy and data security, health issues such as motion sickness for some workers and accessibility.

Products from emerging start-ups may not have high-grade security built in, Gownder said. Even the most secure software has the potential to increase worker surveillance, he added.

“Head-mounted displays have eye-tracking capabilities,” he said. “They could track your attention and what you’re looking at.”

Bailenson said that beyond the employer, the tech company may also have access to worker data. For example, some companies who make headsets state that they have the right to access what cameras see in a users’ real-life environment.

When all that data combines with the data that tech companies may already have on users, the result may be particularly concerning, Schloetzer said.

“How do we feel about the merging of [nonwork related] social media activity with our in-work behavior?” he said. “Someone [may] be able to construct a very complete midnight to midnight profile of everything we do.”

While technology has gotten lighter, faster and cheaper, it still could be a major expense for companies and take a physical toll on some workers. In some cases, workers could experience headaches and nausea — a phenomenon that often happens more in women, said Bailenson, who implemented a 30-minute limit on the tech for his VR classes. Equally concerning, some applications require people to be able to wear a headset and use their hands for motion control, which excludes many people who have disabilities, he said.

“We need to think more about this as an industry,” he said. “It’s not only the right thing to do, but also the smart thing to do.”

Q: What does the metaverse mean for the future of work?

For some, the metaverse represents new job opportunities as start-ups and large companies alike try to get a piece of this emerging virtual world. For others, it may mean new training opportunities or more immersive meetings. Workplaces that use services from some of the large tech companies may automatically have access to new features sooner than they expect — and they may not need VR to access them.

But working entirely in the metaverse is unlikely when it comes to the near-term future, at least based on the current technologies and challenges, expert say.

Georgiades doesn’t expect wide adoption for several years.

“It’s important for enterprises not to go from zero to 100 and dive straight in,” he said. “This might not be suitable for everyone.”