Metaverses or virtual worlds, whose participants can interact with each other using AR and VR technologies, are one of the possible options for the development of the Internet, online games, and virtual reality. Cryptocurrencies and NFTs are the principal contender for the role of money and values in the metaverse. Metaverse users get tokens, cryptocurrencies, and NFTs for completing some tasks and roles.
Since 2015, the GameFi metaverse of Decentraland has been developing - a virtual reality platform running on the Ethereum blockchain. Items and pieces of "land" in this virtual world are NFTs that can be bought, thus taking part in the further development of Decentraland. Own sites here have already been acquired, for example, by such known companies as Samsung, JPMorgan Bank, RTVI media holding, Sotheby's auction, and others.
The Decentraland metaverse is divided into themed areas. One of them - Vegas City - specializes in gambling. There are nightclubs, shops, and casinos in Vegas City where you can bet using the in-game ICE cryptocurrency. In the first three months of 2022, players spent $7.5 million at the Decentraland casinos.
Meta Platforms Inc. (former Facebook) is actively working on creating its own Horizon Worlds metaverse. Microsoft, Nvidia, Baidu, and others are taking the first steps toward developing their virtual worlds. In July 2022, the Dubai authorities announced the launch of the Dubai Metaverse project, designed to create 40,000 additional virtual jobs over five years and bring in $4 billion to the budget.