Incursion of Metaverse in Auto Mobile Industry

A not so new concept, Metaverse, is again in limelight due to more and more people and companies entering into it. Recently, Indian Carmaker, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd has unveiled its premium brand NEXA’s Metaverse edtion, in which users can experience the car.  However, the company is not the only one that has taken initiative; many other renowned names, in the same industry, are bullish towards this technology and said to make much bigger investments in it.

You might be wondering, what Metaverse is, and why brands are running behind it? Why a big number of brands are launching their own edition of Metaverse? To understand this first know who are the top automobile companies joined this race? We have jotted some of the answers of these sort of questions. Read below article to know more about it.

What are the Top Auto Companies Involved in the Metaverse?

Maruti Suzuki is not the only one automaker in the industry to launch a Metaverse (NEXAverse). Below are some of the other names who have already launched their equivalent Metaverses. MG Motors India, first to launch this kind of platform in India, named this platform MGverse. It was a part of company’s vision to provide an immersive experience to its customers and stakeholders. The company claims its MGverse to act as a universe that combines multiple virtual spaces into a single platform.  From there onwards the trend is still going on. On 21 July, this year, Volvo Cars India had shown a preview of its concept of Volvoverse. The company also launched its first all electric Sports Utility Vehicle, XC40 Recharge, on VolvoVerse.

BMW Motors, the German automobile manufacturer, tied up with Nvidia Corporation to make simulation of its real world factories. It is also said to use the Nvidia’s Omniverse, to simulate every aspect of its manufacturing operations.  The company claims that this will not only increase the smart manufacturing capability but will also help it ensure workers safety.

The Role of Metaverse in the Future of Automotive Industry

As far as we talk about the benefits of Metaverse, the possibilities are many. It can help the auto companies by enabling them to improve their product quality; reduce manufacturing costs and planning time. It will also let them understand the downsides of any given vehicle in a more accurate way, can increase production output and ensure worker safety.

The concept of Metaverse in the automobile industry can be understood by the fact that it is an integration of real world stimulation with fantasy world. It means both the users and automakers can use it experience the objects and incidents in real worlds using comparatively less resources.

Let’s understand this with an example, everyone dreams of having a supercar but it’s like climbing the Everest. Possible but seems almost impossible for a normal earning person. Practically, supercars serve no better purpose — those who are thinking about speed, no one normally drives 200 Km/h on daily basis — than normal car. Supercars are also meant to take you to the desired destination like the normal car. Now, what makes supercars different from normal cars is look and feel. With the help of Metaverse, people can experience exotic cars; at much affordable prices.

From the brand’s perspective, Metaverse tech can serve the branding purpose by acting as a marketing tool. Things like test driving and in-car experience to the customer can be given to the customer in more accurate way, that too, without sending the vehicle outside and taking the risk or damaging it. Therefore more and more automotive companies are also entering the Metaverse.

How the Metaverse Could Disrupt the In-Car Experience

Because the Metaverse is a combination of the real and imagined worlds, it can be an excellent way to improve the in-car experience. It might be integrated into the driving experience through interactive holographic windscreens or by projecting avatars into passenger seats. While this allows for opportunities for entertainment and education, it also allows for distractions and more pervasive advertising. Keeping Metaverse integrated with Global Positioning Systems (GPS) can display  intersection points and end destinations, as well as potential hazards such as potholes, pedestrians, and other vehicles on the road, on the inside screens. Invisible displays can be a good option to show info graphics and other sorts of information.

It could be a beneficial tool for informing the driver about what is happening around and inside the vehicle. All of this seems like a science fiction movie storyline, but no one knows what will happen. Another application of Metaverse in the vehicle sector is the use of AR technology to highlight intersections and destinations on the internal display. It will also help drivers notice potential hazards such as potholes, pedestrians, and other vehicles on the road.

Conclusion

Understanding all the benefits and good side of Metaverse, you might be thinking why we shouldn’t just adopt it as fast as we can. However, there are some downsides of the incursion of Metaverse in the automotive industry. Suppose a company offers customers to buy a car in Metaverse, how would it help the customers to from one place to another? A vehicle is meant for transportation of good and people but if it cannot serve this basic purpose it arguably carries a question mark on its existence.