18 Key Terms to Know Before Entering the Metaverse

While the term “metaverse” is now everywhere,there are a lot of new concepts and key terms to digest. If you are interested in exploring the next version of internet ahead, here is a glossary of related key terms we have compiled to help you get started and clear up any confusions you might have.

1. Metaverse

Metaverse is a shared and persistent virtual 3D environment with a focus on social connections. People can explore and interact with others in that virtual world in real time with an immersive experience.

2. Social Immersion

Metaverse experiences that allow users to socialize, interact and work with others using avatars in an immersive environments like virtual reality. Enables users to explore and interact with 3D environments and collaborate with other users in a virtual space, all of which facilitates a richer, more compelling, personal way of sharing experiences and relating to one another.

3. Digital Identity

The networked identity in the virtual world can represent an individual, organization, or even device. Users can own different digital identities in the metaverse based on their physical-world identity, such as work identity and personal identity.

4. Teleportation

Teleportation in the metaverse means users can be instantly transported from one place to another without using any means of transportation.

5. NFT

Non-fungible token (NFT) is a kind of digital certificate that represents the ownership of any unique virtual asset like images, avatars, music, digital clothing, etc. NFTs consist of unique unit of data stored on a blockchain which makes the ownership more secure. While some people see NFTs as an investing opportunity, NFTs are more like the pathway to introducing true ownership over digital assets.

6. Mining

Mining a cryptocurrency means recording and verifying transactions on a blockchain by solving complex cryptographic mathematical problems. Miners bring new coins into supply and maintain the blockchain's continuation with a centralized log of all existing transactions.

7. Minting

Minting is the process of creating new blocks in the blockchain. The minting process consists of authenticating information, creating a new block, and recording the data onto the blockchain, which can apply for an NFT or a cryptocurrency.

While mining uses a Proof of Work (PoW) protocol, minting uses a Proof of Stake (PoS) protocol, which is known as staking.

8. Staking

New blocks in a blockchain are created through the authentication of information. People deposit their tokens as a guarantee of the legitimacy to validate new transactions being add to the blockchain, and receive staking rewards as a return.

9. Gas Fee

The transaction fees for processing a transaction on the blockchain which consumes a certain amount of electricity computational power and equipment to verify and validate a transaction.

10. Digital Twins

A digital twin is the virtual representation of an asset in the physical world. With IoT sensors equipped to the asset in the physical world, the virtual replica exist simultaneously with the physical one via constant data transmission. Digital twin technologies use real-time and historical data to reflect the past and present. Businesses also leverage it to simulate predicted futures and accelerate decision-making.

11. XR

Extended Reality (XR) is an umbrella term for all computer-generated environments that converge physical and virtual elements, and involve human-machine interactions. Under XR, there are virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR) which all deliver virtual experience for users via different types of wearables.

12. Blockchain

A blockchain is a list of data records organized into sequential blocks that build upon one another. Each block in the chain is given an exact time stamp when it is added to the chain and the blocks are all linked via cryptography. Its distributed and immutable structure makes it impossible to reverse any actions made on the timeline. Different kinds of data can be stored on a blockchain, and the most common use nowadays has been as a ledger for transactions.

13. Decentralization

Distribution of ownership is the core of decentralization. Data is no longer regulated and controlled by one single corporation or individual, but a dispersed network where anyone can participate.

14. P2P

Peer-to-peer (P2P) is a network of distributed architecture without a central server. Users are able to interact without the involvement of a central authority or any third-party.

15. Web 3.0

While Web 1.0 refers to static pages displaying information, Web 2.0 means dynamic sites focused on user-generated content hosted on centralised websites, Web 3.0 is an internet operating on decentralised platforms with blockchain, AI, machine learning technologies incorporated, making the Internet more responsive to user needs and giving users more control over their data.

16. dApps

Decentralized Application (dApp) operates on a peer-to-peer network of computers instead of a single computer. Since it is a blockchain-powered application that combines a frontend user interface and smart contracts running on a decentralized network, dApp is controlled by the logic written on the contract but not any individual or organization.

17. DAO

Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) is an entity without a centralized leadership. Governance of the entity is based on a collective of members and decisions are made through group votes in a bottom-up approach. DAO’s transactions and rules are all recorded on a blockchain so no one can edit it without being noticed. With smart contracts laying the foundational rules, automated processes are executed upon predefined conditions are met.

18. Play-to-Earn

Play-to-earn (P2E) games allow players to participate in the games and earn in-game cryptocurrencies through battles, tasks, or selling assets as NFTs. Since players are given real ownership over their in-game assets, they can bring the cryptocurrencies or NFTs they earned in the games outside the games and sell them in the physical world.

KBQuest and the Metaverse

Metaverse is converging the physical and digital space. Undoubtedly it is going to innovate the way people engage with each other as well as brands on the internet.

We are glad that we have been paving the way all along for the development of metaverse services by investing and demonstrating our sophistication in different key building blocks of the metaverse.

By bringing all the necessary capabilities together along with the continuous investments in cutting-edge technologies, we are excited to embark on the metaverse journey and bring in a range of potentially limitless future metaverse solutions.

We guide businesses to outperform the competition.