Virtual Society

1. Virtual worlds have been integral to human society for millennia

We have always been a species of worldbuilders.

Ancient metaverses. From the megaliths of Göbekli Tepe to the pyramids of Egypt, humans have long created virtual worlds of meaning that intersect with and influence the physical world. These constructed realities serve psychological and social functions, providing fulfillment and creating value for individuals and societies. They allow humans to exist simultaneously in multiple realities: the physical world and elevated worlds created by our minds.

Value transfer. These virtual worlds are not mere escapism but create tangible value in the real world. They inspire art, music, literature, and architecture; generate cultural traditions; and inform codes of law and behavior. The interaction between these worlds and physical reality forms a network of meaning and consequences, allowing individuals to become their "full metaversal selves."

Examples of ancient metaverses:

• Egyptian cult of the dead and pyramid construction
• Greek mythology and its influence on society
• Religious beliefs and their impact on daily life

2. The modern economy prioritizes productivity over fulfillment

Productivity is not inherently virtuous, nor should it be an end in itself.

Industrial Age legacy. The modern economy, shaped by the Industrial Revolution, prioritizes productivity over individual fulfillment. This focus has led to a widespread crisis of purpose, with many jobs failing to meet basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness.

Bullshit jobs. As automation and efficiency have increased, many modern jobs have become what anthropologist David Graeber calls "bullshit jobs" - positions that even those who hold them believe are unnecessary or harmful to society. This situation has contributed to widespread disaffection and alienation in the workforce.

Characteristics of the modern work environment:

• Emphasis on long hours and constant productivity
• Devaluation of leisure and play
• Disconnect between increased productivity and wage growth
• Prevalence of unfulfilling and mentally unstimulating work

3. Virtual worlds offer unprecedented opportunities for human fulfillment

Better Experiences for Better Living.

Fulfillment engines. Virtual worlds, particularly those in the emerging metaverse, have the potential to provide unprecedented access to fulfilling experiences. Unlike the productivity-focused real world, these digital environments can be optimized to meet human psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness.

Experience creation. The metaverse will industrialize the production of optimal inner experiences, creating new types of adventures and challenges that were previously impossible. This will allow individuals to pursue peak fulfillment in ways that the physical world cannot match.

Benefits of virtual world experiences:

• Customizable challenges matched to individual skill levels
• Opportunities for rapid skill acquisition and mastery
• Rich social interactions and community building
• Access to fantastical and historically impossible scenarios

4. Complexity, not graphics, determines the value of virtual experiences

Graphical immersion isn't enough to sustain a useful virtual world.

Useful complexity. The value of a virtual world is not determined by its visual fidelity but by the richness and depth of interactions it offers. A world's useful complexity increases with every new object, environment, and avatar with which participants can meaningfully interact.

Technological challenges. Creating truly complex virtual worlds requires overcoming significant technological hurdles, particularly in networking and computational power. The ability to support large numbers of simultaneous users engaged in meaningful interactions is crucial for creating valuable virtual experiences.

Metrics for evaluating virtual world complexity:

• Number of simultaneous users supported
• Variety and depth of possible interactions
• Persistence and consequences of user actions
• Ability to support emergent behaviors and societal structures

5. The metaverse is a network of meaning connecting multiple worlds

A metaverse is a collection of realities, including the real world or a "home reality" and a series of other worlds that a society imbues with meaning.

Value transfer. The key characteristic of a metaverse is its ability to facilitate the transfer of value and meaning between different worlds, including the physical world. This transfer can take many forms, from psychological fulfillment to economic transactions.

Ingenuity matrix. A metaverse functions as an ingenuity matrix, binding together its constituent parts and facilitating the exchange of value and meaning. As the connections between worlds grow stronger, they conduct more meaning and consequence, empowering more people to expand the parameters of the connected worlds.

Components of a valuable metaverse:

• Multiple interconnected virtual worlds
• Mechanisms for value creation and transfer between worlds
• Shared histories and economies
• User-driven expansion and modification of world parameters

6. Virtual jobs will create a new fulfillment-driven economy

The virtual worlds of tomorrow will create a surfeit of rich, useful experiences for participants: quests that are immersive and dense with meaning, in environments that feel like they are teeming with intelligent life.

Fulfillment economy. As virtual worlds grow in complexity and importance, they will generate millions of new employment opportunities centered around creating fulfilling experiences for others. These jobs will be inherently creative and have the potential to eliminate many of the structural inefficiencies that make real-world jobs dissatisfying.

Economic transformation. The rise of virtual employment will lead to a fundamental shift in the global economy, moving from a production-focused model to one centered on fulfillment. This transition will create new opportunities for remote work, globalization of labor, and individual economic empowerment.

Characteristics of virtual jobs:

• Focus on creating fulfilling experiences for others
• Low barriers to entry and opportunities for advancement
• Creative and socially beneficial nature of work
• Potential for high earnings based on value creation

7. Effective regulation is crucial for a valuable and ethical metaverse

We must design a new framework that allows us to intelligently differentiate between types of labor and types of obligations, and we're going to have to develop this framework well in advance of when we think we will need it.

Lessons from the internet. The current state of the internet, dominated by a few large companies that control vast amounts of user data, serves as a cautionary tale for the development of the metaverse. Effective regulation is necessary to prevent similar consolidation of power and exploitation of users in virtual worlds.

Regulatory challenges. Governing the metaverse will require new frameworks that can address the unique challenges posed by virtual economies, employment, and social structures. These regulations must balance the need for innovation with the protection of individual rights and societal interests.

Key areas for metaverse regulation:

• Data privacy and ownership
• Virtual employment rights and protections
• Economic transactions and taxation in virtual worlds
• Governance structures for virtual societies

8. The metaverse is a stepping stone to post-human evolution

The true future of humanity lies not just in our species bidding farewell to Earth and expanding outward into space, but also in slipping the bonds of the "real world" and expanding inward into countless strange and strangely rewarding virtual worlds of our own design.

Expanded human potential. The metaverse represents the first step towards a post-human future where individuals can transcend the limitations of their physical bodies and explore new dimensions of existence. This evolution will lead to unprecedented opportunities for fulfillment, expanded intelligence, and intrinsic growth.

Speciation and fragmentation. As virtual worlds become increasingly complex and fulfilling, human society will begin to fragment into multiple realities, each with its own rules, values, and contexts. This process of speciation will lead to a diversification of human experience and potential that goes far beyond our current understanding of reality.

Potential outcomes of post-human evolution:

• Ability to experience multiple lifetimes within a short period
• Exploration of realities with different physical laws and temporalities
• Development of new forms of intelligence and consciousness
• Creation of societies that transcend current human limitations

Last updated: September 11, 2024