Matthew Ball - A Manual to The Metaverse - [Invest Like the Best, EP.286]

My guest today is Matthew Ball. Matt is an investor, the former head of strategy at Amazon studios, and one of the brightest minds in the media industry. Through his essays and now his book, which launches today, Matt has established himself as the foremost authority on the Metaverse, which has stormed into the public eye since I first had him on the show two years ago. The Metaverse is the focus of our discussion and I hope you enjoy this encyclopedic tour through all of its details as much as I did. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here. ----- This episode is brought to you by Canalyst. Canalyst is the leading destination for public company data and analysis. If you're a professional equity investor and haven't talked to Canalyst recently, you should give them a shout. Learn more and try Canalyst for yourself at canalyst.com/Patrick. ----- Today's episode is brought to you by Brex. Brex is the integrated financial platform trusted by the world's most innovative entrepreneurs and fastest-growing companies. With Brex, you can move money fast for instant impact with high-limit corporate cards, payments, venture debt, and spend management software all in one place. Ready to accelerate your business? Learn more at brex.com/best. ----- Invest Like the Best is a property of Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Invest Like the Best, visit joincolossus.com/episodes. Past guests include Tobi Lutke, Kevin Systrom, Mike Krieger, John Collison, Kat Cole, Marc Andreessen, Bill Gurley, Anu Hariharan, Ben Thompson, and many more. Stay up to date on all our podcasts by signing up to Colossus Weekly, our quick dive every Sunday highlighting the top business and investing concepts from our podcasts and the best of what we read that week. Sign up here. Follow us on Twitter: @patrick_oshag | @JoinColossus Show Notes [00:02:37] - [First question] - Which most represents the Metaverse: Minecraft, Ready Player One, Fortnite, or Facebook’s Horizon [00:05:58] - Facebook trying to own the concept of the Metaverse by changing their name [00:09:22] - Defining what the Metaverse is and a good working definition of it [00:11:33] - The state of the engines behind 3D output and the history of them [00:16:32] - The role IP played in bootstrapping the first Metaverses [00:18:32] - Where the ability to create digital environments will lead, and what Unreal 7 could look like compared to Unreal 5 today [00:21:03] - Natural limits of the Metaverse compared to real-world experiences [00:24:16] - Other sensory inputs that will need to be improved for digital immersion [00:26:59] - Why the initial excitement of trying something like Oculus wears off over time, both for casual gamers and those excited about this new frontier [00:31:40] - Changes in technology and new projects that have him most excited that will empower the digital infrastructure for Metaverses [00:37:14] - What interoperability means and why it has its own chapter in his book [00:31:52] - How Roblox connects with Fortnite and how far down we need to go to build a bridge between digital worlds [00:46:13] - What will drive commerce in the Metaverse and the possibility for a singular currency standard [00:51:35] - Considering the demand for the Metaverse and whether or not it will be a constraint on adoption and success [00:57:37] - What the modern equivalent of a lemonade stand will be in the Metaverse [00:59:58] - The lower adoption rates for more participatory media consumption[01:03:19] - Potential pitfalls and the dark side of the metaverse [01:06:14] - Who the categorical winners of the Metaverse might be [01:14:15] - The top things he would suggest exploring to best understand the Metaverse