As visionaries from Silicon Valley envision a future where the metaverse becomes an integral part of our lives, the landscape of consumer experiences is poised for a profound transformation. Equipped with VR glasses, individuals may soon immerse themselves in virtual worlds, navigating as avatars and engaging with others in this digital realm. This shift opens up novel opportunities for brand manufacturers, including the prospect of selling digital twins of exclusive products in virtual stores.
Notably, automotive development may also find a home in the metaverse, with companies like US chip manufacturer Nvidia leading the charge with its ‘Omniverse.’ This platform aims to facilitate the creation of digital twins of factories, robot training in simulated environments, and collaborative development efforts across geographical boundaries. The metaverse could potentially serve as a space for carrying out aspects of, if not entire, vehicle development processes.
Imagine interior designers crafting and testing different vehicle interiors virtually, allowing potential customers to provide feedback on design concepts long before production commences. Virtual development departments, staffed by digital bots, could continually innovate and contribute to the vehicles of the medium-term future. The necessity for detailed digital twins becomes apparent, enabling simulated test drives and other crucial development processes within the metaverse.
Porsche Engineering, for instance, is exploring the integration of technologies and models to enrich the metaverse with realistic scenarios, particularly for testing highly automated driving functions. In this envisioned future, customers’ avatars could purchase exclusive virtual sports cars at metaverse dealerships. These digital vehicles, powered by blockchain technology as non-fungible tokens (NFTs), promise an exclusivity mirroring their real-world counterparts.
The prospect of virtual ‘Cars & Coffee’ gatherings, where Porsche enthusiasts virtually gather to admire their digital sports cars and discuss life, is presented as a potential future scenario. However, the realization of such experiences hinges on consumer acceptance of this virtual paradigm. While virtual environments offer fidelity to reality, they inherently operate as models that answer pre-posed questions. The dynamic, physical sensations of real-world experiences remain distinct. Yet, the appeal and enjoyment derived from virtual environments are deemed to be genuine, creating a tantalizing prospect for the future of automotive development within the metaverse.
