EXPLAINER: What is the metaverse and how will it work?

The term “metaverse” is the latest buzzword to capture the tech industry’s imagination — and while Facebook parent Meta is the best-known entrant into this futuristic virtual concept, it's certainly not the only one.

Mark Zuckerberg’s all-in embrace — including renaming his company and investing tens of billions of dollars — might be the biggest thing to happen to the metaverse since science fiction writer Neal Stephenson coined the term for his 1992 novel “Snow Crash.”

But Zuckerberg and his team are hardly the only tech visionaries with ideas on how the metaverse, which will employ a mix of virtual reality and other technologies, should take shape.

At this year’s CES, the tech industry showcase in Las Vegas, the metaverse is a “key theme,” said Kinsey Fabrizio, senior vice president at the trade group Consumer Technology Association. She pointed to automaker Stellantis and software giant Microsoft, which have a partnership to create a showroom in the metaverse. Another company, OVR, lets people smell the metaverse.

As with any emerging technology, there are plenty of concerns around the metaverse, including whether it could allow big tech companies access to even more personal data, or contribute to the spread of hate and misinformation along with other online harms that exacerbate real-world problems. Then there are those goggles. For now, anyone who wants to enter the metaverse must wear a virtual reality headset — an immediate deal breaker for some people.

WHAT IS THE METAVERSE?

Think of it as the internet brought to life, or at least rendered in 3D. Zuckerberg has described it as a “virtual environment” you can go inside of — instead of just looking at on a screen. Essentially, it’s a world of endless, interconnected virtual communities where people can meet,...