BCN (Library of the National Congress of Chile)
Chile
January 13, 2023
I have always been a bit restless, never staying still in one place, and it's not just related to professional matters. I am from Punta Arenas, and at the age of 18, I had the curiosity to study computer science in another city, so I went to Valdivia, where I completed my degree.
But since almost everything related to technology is in Santiago, I moved to work there. I started in various areas of information technology, but I always wanted something more, to broaden my horizons beyond just programming. So, I enrolled in a master's program in innovation and entrepreneurship at the University of Santa Maria, where I could start thinking outside the box.
We went on a tour of San Francisco to visit Google and other tech companies. While there, I got the bug to study abroad, preferably in an English-speaking country. Until then, my English was not very good, but when we returned, I started taking classes, tried all the systems, and the only one that worked for me was a private tutor. I started building my life around the language, with podcasts, music, and conversation meetings to practice that helped me.
After two years of studying English, I asked myself, 'Do you still want to go, or do you see yourself doing this for the rest of your life?' Since I couldn't answer that question, I started exploring options.
The UK was my first choice, but that meant pursuing another master's degree that I had to fully pay for, and I couldn't work at the same time. The option was Australia because it allows you to work and study, as well as simultaneously take VET (Vocational Education and Training) courses. So, I said, 'This is it.'
When I arrived in March 2020, in Covid time, I never imagined I would end up working in this field. Four days after arriving, all borders in Australia were closed, and since Australians are well-organised, they locked everyone in; you could only go out for an hour for exercise or to the supermarket.
So, I had to study online; there was no option to work, and I had to start using up my savings. Fortunately, I came prepared. One day, in digital marketing class, the teacher told us that big companies were using new technologies to offer new shopping experiences to their consumers.
Although back then, nobody talked about The Metaverse - the term was not known as such - I studied something about augmented reality. I learned how companies used Augmented Reality, similar to Pokemon Go, where you use a device to place digital elements in the physical world. In other words, you can try on sunglasses with your phone, see how a tattoo looks, try on earrings, watches, etc.
At that time, major companies were using it to provide a new shopping experience for their consumers. That clicked with me, and I thought, 'This is what I like.' Since I had the idea of starting a project and bringing it to Chile, I began researching more, practising, and learning from YouTube videos. I started practising with Instagram filters, and suddenly, the idea of launching a business here in Australia emerged.
I had no idea where to start, but I had enough time because I couldn't do anything else, just be locked up. So, I used all that time to research and reach the State Library of Victoria. They have an entrepreneurship community called Star Space, and I applied with an idea. They liked it and gave me a spot.
During that time, I applied with an agency that offered augmented reality services for small and medium-sized businesses because I had just arrived, and I thought it would be impossible to do it on a larger scale. So, that's how I focused on small and medium-sized businesses.
I think it was my first goal achieved because nobody addresses the issue of small and medium-sized businesses. That's why they found it interesting, and they said, 'Let's do it.'
With the pandemic, many businesses had to move to online selling platforms, the majority without technology knowledge so they were forced to migrate to online sales.
I saw an opportunity because, with the technology I was starting to develop, if someone, for example, sold physical glasses, they had to do it online. Then all the competitors started to join. So, to capture the attention of new consumers, it was necessary to highlight the products and the technology. It made sense to Australians, so I started working more diligently.
It was at this moment that Mark Zuckerberg announced that Facebook is changing to Meta, and the focus is on The Metaverse. At that time, it was said to be a medium to long-term technology. The concept of the Metaverse comes from a novel called 'Snow Crash' by Neal Stephenson, and in my opinion, Zuckerberg's masterstroke is to start associating it with Meta because all the major tech companies were already working on this.
Although there is still no clear definition of what The Metaverse is or whether it is a virtual world or universe, for me, the definition that makes the most sense is that it is a digital and three-dimensional ecosystem where users will be able to perform the same activities as they normally do in the real world.
This means that in the virtual world, we will be able to shop, make transactions, attend meetings, work, go to the gym, etc. Perhaps we may prefer physical contact, but the new generations are already fully immersed in the virtual world, and they come with that in their DNA.
In what I am working on now, my vision and what is behind the project is the democratisation of The Metaverse, meaning that for people to understand what it is, we have to take a step back and understand what Augmented Reality is. It is much more economically accessible for smaller businesses, and they can quickly measure results.
What I have done is divide The Metaverse into four pillars. The first is what I mentioned, augmented reality. The second is virtual reality, and the third is what constitutes NFT technology, which, for example, provides a certificate of a unique owner of a digital file. This pillar also includes cryptocurrencies that will be the type of transaction used in The Metaverse.
The fourth pillar is all the physical infrastructure we will need to keep the entire ecosystem alive. That is, servers, mobile devices, headsets, all the physical things you need to keep this ecosystem alive.
All of the above falls under artificial intelligence, which is crucial today and is present in each of the pillars. So when explained in this way, it makes much more sense to Australians in general and to the clients I currently have. My vision is that when they understand pillar by pillar, when The Metaverse is officially launched, they will understand what it is all about. It's like a methodology that goes behind it to make it simpler to understand. That is my job.
