Ken Kutaragi, the creator of the iconic video game device PlayStation, believes the Metaverse is worthless.
Ken Kutaragi is not a fan of virtual reality headgear, which he describes as “just irritating.”
‘Being in The Real World Is Very Important’ – Ken Kutaragi
The Metaverse has quickly become one of the most popular topics, especially since Facebook’s name was changed to Meta at the end of last year.
Despite growing fashionable, the network of 3D virtual worlds centred on social interaction is not for everyone. Ken Kutaragi, the founder of PlayStation and former CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment, is one such person.
The 71-year old Japanese argued in a recent interview with Bloomberg that the Metaverse is not the next big step in the tech universe. To him, it serves to divide rather than to unite:
“Being in the real world is very important, but the Metaverse is about making quasi-real in the virtual world, and I can’t see the point of doing it. You would rather be a polished avatar instead of your real self? That’s essentially no different from anonymous messageboard sites.”
Separately, the engineer said that he, too, is not a fan of virtual reality headgear. He feels they have the ability to detach individuals from reality, and as a result, they are “simply annoying.”
Who Has a Different Point of View?
While Kutaragi is opposed to the Metaverse, Grayscale, the world’s largest asset management organization, is not. It was predicted not long ago that the niche would be worth more than $1 trillion in the next few years.
The investment behemoth stated that Metaverse’s potential is not limited to the gaming industry, but rather extends far beyond. The industry includes components like advertising, digital events, social commerce, and developer/creator monetization.
Haim Israel, a Bank of America strategist, is likewise optimistic about the situation. In his opinion, a Metaverse is a tool that, if certain circumstances are satisfied, will propel the crypto world towards widespread adoption:
“I definitely believe this is a massive, massive opportunity. You need the right platforms… that are definitely going to be a big opportunity for this entire ecosystem.”
Israel also believes that “we’re going to start using cryptocurrencies as money” in the Metaverse. However, Bitcoin, Ether, and other private digital assets are now too volatile to serve in this capacity. As a result, stablecoins are likely to evolve further as they are tethered to fiat currencies or precious metals and so move less.
