Dubai to create virtual city in metaverse

One Human Reality will be Dubai’s presence in the emerging metaverse, World Government Summit hears

Many of us could soon be logging on to the Metaverse to meet friends and explore foreign places. Bing Guan / Bloomberg

A digital twin city of Dubai in a virtual world will offer huge opportunities for industry and provide residents with an alternative reality to meet people and share ideas, officials said.

One Human Reality will be the emirate's presence in the emerging metaverse, an augmented world where avatars of ourselves can interact online.

The plans were revealed by Dubai Municipality at the World Government Summit, and will include computer-generated environments to combine elements of social media, augmented reality, virtual reality, video games, cryptocurrencies, and other technologies.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, and Mohammed Al Gergawi, Minister of Cabinet Affairs, listen to 'ethical hacker' David Colombo speak at a session at the World Government Summit 2022. Pawan Singh / The National

Colombo, founder and chief executive of the Colombo Technology cyber security company, at the summit. Pawan Singh / The National

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, attends the World Government Summit in Dubai. Photo: Dubai Media Office

Sheikh Mohammed, Sheikh Hamdan and Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Finance and Deputy Ruler of Dubai, at the summit. Photo: Dubai Media Office

George Friedman, founder and chairman of Geopolitical Futures, at the summit. Pawan Singh / The National

The summit will conclude on Wednesday. Pawan Singh / The National

A visitor steps on to a self-driving vehicle at the summit. Pawan Singh / The National

Thousands of delegates and hundreds of speakers are attending the summit. Pawan Singh / The National

CNBC anchor Hadley Gamble, left, moderates a panel discussion featuring the UAE's Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, Suhail Al Mazrouei, Saudi Arabia's Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman and Iraqi Kurdistan's Prime Minister Masrour Barzani. AFP

People arrive at the World Government Summit, being held on Tuesday and Wednesday. Pawan Singh / The National

People arrive at the World Government Summit, being held on Tuesday and Wednesday. Pawan Singh / The National

A poster shows Elon Musk, a speaker at a previous year's event. Pawan Singh / The National

Delegates at the World Government Summit 2022. Pawan Singh / The National

The conference centre at Expo 2020 Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National

The auditorium is one of the major buildings that will remain in place after the world's fair ends. Pawan Singh / The National

“One Human Reality is the meeting point or integration between two worlds: the metaverse and the world we are currently living in together,” said Dawood Al Hajri, Dubai Municipality director general.

“The metaverse today has become closer to reality than we could have imagined.”

At about $300 (Dh1,500) for the virtual reality headset needed to join in most aspects of the world, many could be priced out of the online environment.

However, businesses hope the metaverse will become a marketplace, with financial analysts predicting it will create $800 billion of revenue by 2024.

Residents could be joined by friends in other parts of the world in the form of avatars on a virtual walk through a city park.

Similarly, simulated time travel to historic moments, or immersive tours of landmark destinations may be other applications.

Such use would require portals in public spaces and city centres, Mr Al Hajri said, adding that governments and cities should invest in building this infrastructure as soon as possible.

“Cities benefit from integrating big data,” Mr Hajri said.

“With the help of the Internet of Things (IOT) and artificial intelligence, city leaders will be able to build a digital infrastructure enabling us to access this world in a new way.”

The metaverse will result in inclusion in the education and health care sectors if its hardware is made more accessible, said Noor Sweid, founder and general partner of UAE venture capital company Global Ventures.

“The bigger impact of metaverse is its ability to make the world a better place,” she said during a panel discussion at the inaugural Investopia summit in Dubai on Monday.

“If you can get to a point where metaverse hardware is accessible to enable inclusion, that is ideal.”

The global metaverse industry was valued at $47.69bn in 2020, according to Emergen Research.

A mansion in the metaverse - in pictures

Hampton Hall - the world's first metaverse mansion. All photos: Fine & Country

Developer Stately Homes aims to build the 11-bedroom property on a 0.5-hectare plot in the gated Crown Estate in Surrey.

Whoever buys the house in real life will be offered first refusal on its digital blueprint in the form of a non-fungible token.

The owner of the Hampton Hall NFT would be able to download the data into the metaverse.

The dual listing raises the intriguing possibility that the £29 million ($40m) Hampton Hall in the UK could have two separate legal owners.

The swimming pool of Hampton Hall.

A games room.

The large garden of the property.