Robin Raskin’s glimpse of the metaverse includes an image of avatars going to work on the Glue platform.
 
NEW YORK—The metaverse’s star is on the rise. In the past few weeks, virtually every mainstream media outlet on the planet has been buzzing with news about this dynamic new digital realm and how it can serve as a platform for creating novel experiences that engage brands and consumers in new ways. The increasing visibility of this previously obscure dimension of cyberspace is evident in everything from Mark Zuckerberg’s announcement that Facebook is changing its name to Meta to the recent rise in metaverse conferences and exhibits, the visibility of companies like Roblox which has gone public, and a new fascination with NFTs (non-fungible tokens) and cryptocurrencies.




Nike Air showed up on the Roblox platform.
Vision Monday is also eyeing the metaverse. Just a day before the Facebook-Meta announcement, attendees of Vision Monday’s Leadership Summit were treated to a glimpse of the metaverse and learned how it might transform the ways consumers interact with brands during a boundary-pushing virtual session featuring three of today’s top metaverse and technology experts.

To introduce VM Summit attendees to the metaverse, Robin Raskin, founder of the Virtual Events Group (VEG) and a leading commentator on consumer tech trends, kicked off the session by taking them on a whirlwind video tour that including a brand experience, an event experience, a game experience for advertising and a fully immersive open-ended experience.

Next Cathy Hackl, a globally recognized tech futurist who has been dubbed the Godmother of the Metaverse, and Chick Foxgrover, executive vice president, creative technology & innovation at the 4A’s, spoke with VM’s lens and tech editor Andrew Karp about what’s fueling the recent surge in media coverage of the metaverse and how brands can leverage its unique attributes to reach customers. Click here to learn more about their conversation.

VMAIL readers can watch the “Welcome to the Metaverse” video here. Those who want to see the entire Summit metaverse session, which is even more informative, can register here. Registration is free for eyecare professionals.




VM’s Andrew Karp (l), interviewed metaverse experts Cathy Hackl (c) and Chick Foxgrover.

“Welcome to the Metaverse” is an element of the Oct. 27 "Retail & Healthcare: Upended!" which also included an exclusive presentation by retail strategist and experiential designer Melissa Gonzalez, founder of the Lion’esque Group and principal at MG2, and a discussion with leading optical retailers and ECPs on how to prioritize technology change.

Also available on the exclusive VM Summit platform are many resources from featured VM Summit speakers and on-demand session segments from the prior three VM Leadership Summit sessions this year—June 23 VirtualEYES on telehealth, Aug 11. ALL CONSUMING on the new consumer and the Oct. 20 session on Rebuilding Trust and Remote Possibilities in remote care access.

All virtual VM Leadership Summit are now available on-demand for registered attendees.

The Platinum Sponsors of the 2021 VM Leadership Summit are EssilorLuxottica, Healthy Eyes Advantage-PECAA and VSP Global. The Gold Sponsor is The Vision Council's Vision Health Alliance and the Silver Sponsors are Alcon and Ocuco.