A recent report on Saudi Arabia's burgeoning metaverse market highlights significant strides in the field.
The metaverse, a term encompassing an interconnected digital realm that blurs the boundaries between the virtual and physical domains, is envisioned by experts as the next evolution of the internet—a shared, immersive, 3D space for users to explore and engage in. While this concept has gained substantial traction globally, its development varies across regions and countries, with the United States and China leading the charge.
In the Middle East, Saudi Arabia stands out as a prominent metaverse pioneer, alongside the United Arab Emirates, according to a comprehensive study conducted by Strategic Gears, a prominent Saudi Arabian management consultancy. The report reveals that the metaverse market was valued at $1.1 billion in the previous year, with projections indicating an astonishing surge to $7.6 billion by 2023.
The addressable market for service providers, encompassing strategists, implementation consultancies, and IT companies, reached approximately $185 million last year. However, this figure may underestimate the true extent of metaverse involvement, given its significance in Saudi Arabia's economic transformation and the complexities involved in tracking expenditure.
Diverse Applications Emerge
Saudi Arabia has embraced the metaverse across various sectors, including retail, online services, tourism, education, and media, with a wide array of solutions taking shape. One remarkable project, NEOM, the futuristic desert city unveiled in 2017, has attracted over $1 billion in investments to create a digital twin of the city. This innovation allows prospective property buyers to experience NEOM before its physical construction, integrating digital and real-world experiences, and fostering a market for cryptocurrency and NFT transactions.
The Royal Commission for AlUla introduced an immersive 3D experience of Hegra's Tomb of Lihyan, Son of Kuza, in Decentraland, enabling global tourists to embark on virtual, lifelike tours.
The metaverse's integration into daily life offers substantial potential in the healthcare sector. Seha Virtual, hailed as the "first virtual hospital," offers remote users medical advice and coordinates the supply chain and logistical support across the Kingdom, showcasing the metaverse's potential in healthcare.
In the education sector, virtual reality headsets and software are making online learning more accessible, creating immersive environments to enhance remote student engagement and performance.
Strategic Gears predicts a significant expansion of these applications, with the Saudi Arabian metaverse market expected to reach $1.5 billion this year, followed by sustained double-digit growth in the coming years. However, this growth, while promising, lags behind the global metaverse potential.
National Strategy and Future Prospects
In contrast to China's projected $1 trillion metaverse industry in 2023, both the United States and Saudi Arabia lack defined national plans for the technology. Strategic Gears highlights China's substantial government investments in virtual and augmented reality technologies, coupled with ambitious goals for metaverse platform development and implementation.
Nevertheless, the report suggests that Saudi Arabia is taking steps to maximize metaverse revenues. Initiatives such as e-sports and digital tourism indicate the Kingdom's commitment to formulating strategies to harness the full potential of the metaverse in its economy, ensuring that it remains at the forefront of this transformative technology.