By Mike Robuck

Metaverse has role in driving social change

While most consumers are excited by the faster speeds that 5G enables, Cortney Harding, founder of Friends with Holograms sees the next-generation of network technology as a means for social change.

Ahead of speaking in a session today, Harding told Mobile World Daily that the metaverse, underpinned by 5G, can serve as a platform for social change through the use of VR and AR.

Instead of hiding behind a screen or texting angry messages, the metaverse can be used as an “amazing tool” for human connections because the users feel as though they are talking to another person, especially when they hear another voice, she argues.

Harding believes the metaverse can also be a tool for building activist communities. With authentic connections, metaverse users can root out trolls or bad actors because, unlike social media, it’s harder to have multiple metaverse identities.

The use of 5G will also “allow people to consume and interact with contextual information in real time”, she added. AR glasses can be used to find directions in an unfamiliar city, which would give women a better sense of safety.

VR would enable a user to experience a situation by feeling what it is like to be discriminated against, or to practice having a tough conversation about depression or anxiety. That user experience could help someone understand certain situations by allowing him or her to “live” through them in a safe way using VR, explained Harding.