Everything about the metaverse you were too afraid to ask (Rebroadcast)

WAMU 88.5 | By Michelle Harven

Published December 26, 2022 at 2:03 PM EST

A person wearing an Oculus Quest 2 attends a virtual meeting using Immersed Virtual Reality program at the Immersed offices in Austin, Texas.

Tech companies are scrambling to include the metaverse in their business plans, spending more than $120 billion just this year to be the first to strike meta gold.

Last year, Facebook announced it was changing its name to Meta. The pivot to the new technology marks its unmistakable belief in virtual worlds.

But what exactly is the metaverse? Does it already exist? And what are the implications for Silicon Valley, the country, and the world?

We talk with Matthew Ball, author of the new book “The Metaverse: And How it Will Revolutionize Everything,” and Alex Heath, co-host of the “Land of the Giants” podcast.