Metaverse

The metaverse is a loosely defined idea of persistent, shared virtual worlds where people interact through avatars, often with virtual reality or augmented reality. The term comes from Neal Stephenson's 1992 novel Snow Crash, and it surged in popularity in late 2021 when Facebook renamed itself Meta.

In crypto, "metaverse" usually refers to blockchain-based virtual worlds where land, items and avatars are NFTs that users can buy, sell and carry between applications. Decentraland and The Sandbox are the best-known, each with its own token (MANA and SAND) used to buy virtual land and items.

Metaverse tokens and virtual land prices boomed in 2021 and then fell sharply, and active user numbers in many crypto worlds have been modest. The concept remains speculative. If you are considering buying virtual land or metaverse tokens, check real usage figures rather than headlines.