The metaverse will never come to its full potential without interoperability. Currently, the metaverse – a collection of virtual worlds – is siloed, meaning that these virtual worlds are segmented and disconnected. In order for people to experience the full benefits of what the metaverse has to offer, these worlds must connect.

What is the metaverse?

One way to illustrate metaverse interoperability is with Pangea: the supercontinent that existed several millennia ago. This land mass broke apart into the seven different continents we know today. Civilizations on each continent were not reconnected until shipbuilding advanced enough so that people could successfully travel between them.  

Similarly, there are thousands of virtual worlds which are, in large part, inaccessible from one to another. That is, a person cannot take their avatar from World A to World B and carry their assets, crypto, NFTs or other data with them. As such, virtual worlds do not interoperate.

Metaverse interoperability

Providing access points and robust digital avenues for people to travel from one virtual world to another is no small task. When developers succeed in building access routes a new digital economy will take shape. Currently valued at around $150B, the metaverse is projected to be worth over $1.5T by 2030. 

One more challenge that metaverse companies are facing has to do with hardware. Even if developers are able to successfully build out interoperability, do users have the necessary hardware to interact with the metaverse? 

If not, then it will take more time for the metaverse to be adopted by the mainstream. This will delay investment returns and require users to be educated about engaging with the metaverse.

Interoperability examples

The metaverse builds on the philosophy of cryptocurrency and NFTs: that assets can be transferred from one wallet to another while retaining a publicly visible transfer history. Likewise, metaverse interoperability opens up a superabundance of new opportunities. Some interoperability examples include:

1. Economics – Users need to be able to take their crypto wallets with them across the metaverse. Many wallets from different networks will need to be recognized in each metaverse world.

2. Gaming – If a player in one world earns a new NFT in a game and wants to sell it in a marketplace in another virtual world, they must be able to transfer it and list it in that other world. 

3. Reputation – Just as humans develop reputations in the real world, avatars will develop reputations in the metaverse. Not only avatars but brands as well. Reputations will have to be known in the relevant parts of the metaverse.

4. Occupations – The enterprises and skills an avatar acquires will need to be transferable throughout the metaverse.

5. Privacy – Keeping data and identity equally secure in the metaverse, no matter where a user goes, is of paramount importance. Having a part of the metaverse that is less secure than another part will damage the reputation of that virtual world.

Building the metaverse

Though there is much fanfare around the value of decentralization of blockchain technology, metaverse interoperability necessitates centralization to a certain degree. It will be a long time before the metaverse reaches its full potential. 

Nonetheless, building the metaverse is key to reaching the full potential of web3.