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_On 28 October 2021, Facebook's CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced changing his company's name to Meta, to reflect his focus to the next digital frontier-the meta verse. In this essay, I discuss how this possible future under Zuckerberg's leadership could look like and what could be its possible consequences for us all. At the same time, I discuss ways in which we can ensure that all the harms that exist on Facebook do not translate to the Metaverse so that this technology develops in a safe manner. _
Towards a safer Metaverse
-- By MuhammadUsman - 08 Dec 2021
Imagine walking down a road back from work and you see your favorite restaurant, your preferred clothing shop, your choice of desert and a billboard of your favorite movie. Now imagine playing monopoly with your friends under the great pyramid of Giza, all the while you are sitting in your smelly old apartment in Lahore. That is the world, or rather an alternate world, Mark Zuckerberg desires for us—a world that is lived on demand, and a world that allows us to change our surroundings to meet our desires. Depending on your perspective, this can be an exciting prospect or your worst nightmare.
Since the past few years, Facebook had been in the middle of widespread criticism. In the wake of leaked internal documents exposing Facebook’s management, immense scrutiny regarding user’s data, Cambridge Analytica scandal, lawsuits asserting discriminatory advertisements, and allegations of destroying democracy, Facebook decided to rebrand itself. Mark Zuckerberg has now changed Facebook’s official name to Meta Platform Inc., or “Meta” for short, to reflect Mark Zuckerberg’s focus to the next digital frontier—the metaverse.
As a whole, the word "metaverse" generally refers to a virtual world that lies beyond, on top of, or is an extension of the physical world. It can also be understood as the internet brought to life. Zuckerberg describes it as a “virtual environment” you can go inside of. It is meant to be a virtual world where you can have interactive experiences with people from all over the world. You will be able to work, socialize, play, exercise or even shop while using virtual reality headsets or glasses. Mark Zuckerberg also says that “a lot of metaverse experience is going to be around being able to teleport from one experience to another.” In his video demonstration, Zuckerberg says “users can have a home-space with views of whatever you find most beautiful.” While the concept of a Metaverse is not new, Zuckerberg’s idea differs in that it might come to fruition in this age.
Personally, I cannot imagine Meta paving the way for the Metaverse without feeling remorse and a deep sense of dread. Few would doubt that Meta’s moto ever since its inception has been to slur up as much data and information on its users as it can. After the full-on datafication of the society, tracking and profiling our every move and after gaining far too much control over our reality, Zuckerberg is now adding virtual reality into the mix. Facebook already ruined much of our human social interactions and Meta will now destroy whatever is left.
The idea is not that technological advancements should be resisted; the fear is that it is Zuckerberg’s Meta that wants to lead us into the metaverse and redefine our relationship with technology. Should he succeed, the consequences would surely be dire. This is because Meta’s focus has always been on profits and control and not on producing good technology that is beneficial to the community. Based on the video demonstration and statements by the company, it appears that Zuckerberg’s Metaverse will be a virtual reality tailored to each user’s interest’s, behaviors and preferences. Given that Meta already possesses treasure troves of data on user’s activities both on and off Meta and has successfully created what are arguably the most complete consumer profiles on earth, this does not seem too wild of an idea. However, there is a flipside. Metaverse would also mean fewer social gatherings, public ceremonies, birthday celebrations and even in person dinners. It must be remembered that because this tailor-made virtual heaven’s success would depend on users spending as much time on it as possible, Metaverse will attempt to dimmish all our reasons to interact in the physical world. Given how much time most users spend on their screens and how addicted they are, imagine the addiction with an immersive experience where most of our senses are more engaged. The more detached we become from the physical world, the more emotional numbness we would feel. The more we interact with avatars and robots, the less human we would become. The consequences could mean detachment from reality, isolation, increased mental health distress and depression, all of which have already been proven as consequences of excessive use of social networking sites like Instagram and Facebook.
When Professor Eben Moglen said that Mark Zuckerberg has done more harm to the human race then anyone his age, he did not mean that Meta’s relationship with human social activity is necessarily bad. He meant that Meta’s model is abused by the management. In other words, a bad man's business would also be bad. We must know and accept that the network’s we use to connect with others do not technologically require that simple services be offered in return for comprehensive behavior collection. However, while behavior collection remains at the core of Meta’s business model, much of the existing problems with Facebook would continue to exist in Metaverse. It would also open a new world of data source in which the company could track our facial and finger movements and possibly even brain reading.
Therefore, before the idea of Metaverse becomes normal for us, it is essential Meta allows researchers and journalists to study its digital platform. At the same time, Meta should collaborate with civil rights groups, government agencies and neutral bodies to make Metaverse a safer place. Most importantly though, it must be ensured the Metaverse is not allowed to monetize us anymore. It is also time that our laws finally catch up with technology. Congress can start by revising the anti-trust laws that allows these big tech companies to enjoy near monopolies. Furthermore, as a matter of policy, the government should carry out public awareness campaigns to ensure all potential users, including children and vulnerable groups, are aware of the harms and consequences of Metaverse. Until all of this is done, I would rather stay in the physical world.
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