Technology Innovator Awards 2022

May21135 Best Metaverse Learning Experience Provider 2022 - Germany Immersive learning is an interactive learning method in which students are immersed into a virtual world via the use of Virtual Reality (VR) or Augmented Reality (AR). Basically, you get up in the morning, don your headset, and are instantly transported to a virtual world for a day of engaging education… all without leaving the comfort of your own home. The brainchild of entrepreneur Torsten Fell, the Institute for Immersive Learning (IIL) offers a taste of what the future holds for immersive learning students and, unsurprisingly, there are many benefits to this type of learning. For example, it enables maximum learning success; it generates positive learning experiences; and finally, it makes virtual immersive collaborative learning and working spaces possible. Torsten gives us a scenario… He believes that, in 50 years’ time, the internet as we currently know it will be an archaic and outdated concept. Instead, rather than existing behind a screen in 2D format, theWorld WideWeb will be interactive. We’ll be able to manipulate it and meld the real and digital in ways that we currently cannot imagine. “We are already transitioning away from the nine-to-five commute and turning our backs on the traditional office work setting,” he elaborates. “This is thanks to two years of pandemic lockdowns, and a newfound love of, or tolerance for, virtual meetings.” He continues, “And even myself, as a self-professed ‘techno-phobe’ and ‘late adopter’ of new technological advances, has to admit that the omittance of the hour-long slog to and from the office which used to both start and end my working day, is refreshing. I can get up later, I can keep on top of the housework by performing small tasks throughout the day, and I can wear whatever I like to work in (so long as I don’t have a Zoommeeting, and then all that’s needed is a relatively smart top!). Not to mention, I’m saving a fortune in fuel. But is this new ‘Metaverse’ I’ve heard so much about really all it’s cracked up to be?” Torsten believes ‘Metaverse’ to have become an over-hyped term, so it’s important to note that it doesn’t actually yet exist. And even those invested in the concept disagree about exactly what it will be. So, what is Torsten’s perception of this Metaverse? The ‘Metaverse Campus’ of the IIL offers a new dimension of learning and working in a virtual and expanded world. Enriched with objects you are invited to discover, and with different spaces for different activities. For example, while away your time in the Training Space, the Creative Space, or the Coaching Space. Of course, networking opportunities should not be missing, whilst meetings and counselling sessions can be held in the virtual lounge. So, will rival virtual worlds interconnect in a way that simply doesn’t happen at the moment between competing technologies? Will we spend more time there than in the real world? Will we need entirely new rules to govern these new spaces? A new concept in learning, the Institute for Immersive Learning is the place to explore, find out more, and dip your toe into the (virtual) water of the Metaverse. We find out more from Torsten Fell as the firm is named in the Technology Innovator Awards 2022. Whilst these questions may not have answers yet, that hasn’t stopped a barrage of interest and hyperbole as firms see a newway of making money. And this type of engagement really isn’t a new thing when you think about it. We’ve seen businesses opening in nascent Metaverse worlds, fromMeta’s Horizon Worlds, to games such as Roblox and Fortnite, and newly created lands like Sandbox and Decentraland. Meanwhile, Nike sells virtual trainers, HSBC owns land in Sandbox, and big-name brands such as Coca-Cola, Louis Vuitton, and Sotheby’s have presences in Decentraland. And before all this there was, of course, The Sims. Who can forget the interactive computer world that reigned for just over two decades and allowed users to enter a virtual realmwhere they could play God by controlling characters and environments? Was that game simply an earlier version of the Metaverse? “The term ‘Metaverse’ was coined nearly 30 years ago by author Neal Stephenson,” Torsten elaborates. “In his book, ‘SnowCrash’, the hero finds a better life for himself in a virtual reality world.” But it wasn’t perhaps until 2021, when Mark Zuckerberg himself got onboard, changing the name of Facebook to Meta and investing billions of dollars into turning the social media platform into a Metaverse-first firm, that the majority of us really became aware of it. Despite anyone being quite able to get a grasp of what the Metaverse actually is, there are some astonishing market forecasts for what it may be worth. McKinsey suggests a market value of $5tn (£4.2tn) by 2030, while management consultancy firmGartner predicts a quarter of the world’s population will spend at least one hour a day in the Metaverse by 2026. So, should we jump on board and start planning our virtual futures? Maybe not just yet… But having just earned the title of Best Metaverse Learning Experience Provider 2022 – Germany, Torsten’s Institute of Immersive Learning is certainly worth getting your headset on for! Company: Institute for Immersive Learning Web Address: www.immersivelearning.institute Nov 2244

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