Hey. Today we're going to talk about different immersion levels in the metaverse, and some of the ways you can be involved in creating metaverse spaces and experiences. First, let's make sure we're on the same page with the vocabulary we need to talk about these things. Immersion means being engrossed or absorbed in something, to become fully involved. When we talk about immersion in the metaverse, we mean entering a virtual world and being able to interact with and manipulate it. There are varying levels of immersion in the metaverse, depending on how you access it. While you've heard the terms AR and VR several times throughout this course, I want to introduce to you the term XR. This stands for extended reality. It's a catch-all term for the ways we combine physical and digital worlds: virtual reality (which fully immerses us in the digital), augmented reality (which takes place in the physical world, but with a digital layer on top), and mixed reality (which is a blending of physical and digital). As you can imagine, immersion in the metaverse exists on a spectrum: AR being the least immersive, MR in the middle, and VR being the most immersive. When you want to be truly engaged and absorbed in an experience, say, while watching a performance, playing a game, or even meditating, VR is the way to go. It allows you to close off the physical world around you, including many of its distractions. It enables you to feel truly present. Need to have an important conversation with a friend, family member, or a colleague who lives a world away? Hopping into a virtual space with your headsets on will allow you to feel like you're truly together for significant moments. On the opposite end of the spectrum, we have AR, which is when we add a digital layer to the physical world. Let's say you're sitting at your desk at work. You want to pull up a shared screen from a coworker and have it appear as a second monitor. Or maybe you want to have your cousin join you for dinner, but they live on the other side of the country. You still want to see the food on your plate. VR would be too immersive for both of these situations. But with a fully realized metaverse, AR will layer those virtual elements onto the physical world in a way that allows you to still be present in it. Headsets that can do mixed reality, or MR, means that you can see your surroundings with digital content overlaid into the physical world. Examples of mixed reality devices include Microsoft HoloLens, and, of course, Meta Quest. Now, it's important to remember none of these technologies are required to be a part of the metaverse. As you've learned, the metaverse is and will continue to be accessible from mobile devices, tablets, laptops, desktops. The primary difference is, the level of immersion you experience will be greater if you engage with the metaverse using XR devices, like headsets and glasses. One of the most exciting things about the metaverse is that everyone will be able to have a hand in building it, even you. No, really! Tools already exist, and more are being developed every day to enable people everywhere to create engaging XR experiences. Of course, if you just want to explore the metaverse and enjoy the creations of others, that's totally fine, too. But when the creative urge strikes, there are plenty of ways you can co-create and create in the metaverse. Let's take a look. Meta Spark is a Meta technology that lets users built AR experiences. There are already hundreds of thousands of creators who've used Meta Spark, and those experiences reach over a billion people. Using Meta Spark, a desktop computer application, people create Facebook and Instagram filters. Creators used it to develop custom content for the Coachellaverse, an AR experience built for the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in the summer of 2022. That sounds like fun. No coding experience is necessary to get started with Meta Spark, and it has tools for everyone, from novice to professional. If you'd like to learn more, check out the Meta AR Developer Professional Certificate here on Coursera. Companies are also leveraging the power of co-creation in the metaverse, teaming up with creators and platforms to develop virtual experiences focused on their brands. For example, to celebrate the May 2022 release of the film Top Gun: Maverick, creative and production studio Tommy, Paramount Pictures, and Meta's Creative Shop created an interactive, narrative-driven AR experience on Instagram that gave fans the chance to become a virtual Top Gun flight school attendant. See you in the metaverse, Tom Cruise. Brands like Prada, Adidas, and L'Oréal, have teamed up with artists to create NFTs, which are essentially unique, limited edition digital objects. There's a lot of confusion about NFTs, but don't worry, we're going to talk about them in detail in the next module. Nike and Gucci developed rooms and spaces on the digital platform Roblox, blending experience and advertising in new ways. Whether you're interested in working with others to develop virtual content and experiences, are ready and excited to make your own, or just want to explore what others have bought to digital life, the metaverse offers endless opportunities for creation, exploration, and immersion. Navah Berg not only serves as a senior community specialist, she's also a metaverse content creator. She explains that with XR, we have to shift our minds away from developing physical products to making digital ones. "An actual, tangible item isn't needed," she says. "It's about creating a value-driven purpose for whatever your passion is, and being authentic." Coming up, after a quick glimpse into the future of AR glasses, you'll have the opportunity to explore some of the wondrous places and things that creators like Navah have made in the metaverse. Enjoy the trip.
