Upon hearing the word “metaverse,” many people think about gaming, virtual commerce, attending a sporting event, or other consumer applications. However, the enterprise metaverse—not the consumer space—has a greater incentive to take the plunge and invest in virtual solutions. This is because several substantiated use cases of the metaverse have already been demonstrated for business operations. Spanning everything from employee training to enhancing virtual conferences, and improving remote work to customer experience, the metaverse is not short on benefits for the enterprise. In this article, I will point out five of the most compelling use cases of the metaverse in enterprise settings.
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Like virtually every other industry, the telecommunications (telecom) industry has been affected by current macroeconomic and geopolitical trends (war in Europe, high inflation, global warming, etc.), causing doubt about the future of their enterprise. In some areas, the influence of these key telecom trends may not be as severe as you’d think, but in other areas, there are some radical departures taking place. To help operators and ecosystem players understand the effects of ongoing global challenges, and how to plan for the future, ABI Research has compiled some of the most important developments surrounding the telecoms sector.
Although the COVID-19 pandemic put a hold on biometric payment card projects in 2020 and 2021, the industry has proven to be resilient. Numerous partnerships have formed and each one signals the intention of an eventual commercial launch. With contactless payment cards accounting for 82% of all cards issued this year, biometrics is the next step in payment solutions, as it provides a convenient, safer, and more secure way to transact. Biometric-based payments are also a key aspect of a cashless economy, something that many societies are aiming for in the future.
Up to this point, urban planners have mostly used digital twins for operations, management, and maintenance of assets and services. But increasingly, urban planning has gone beyond these digital twin use cases and involves design and planning for now and the future (sustainability). For example, recent survey findings from U.S.-based IT firm Altair showed that digital twins help 92% of organizations with their sustainability goals.
It’s hard to think of sustainability without renewable energy popping into your head. With the United Nations (UN) calling for global renewable energy investments to triple annually by 2030, hydropower will undoubtedly play an immense role in the future of green energy. While solar and wind are commonly brought up in discussion, they need some serious support because they are fluctuating energy sources that often can’t keep up with demand. From the Internet of Things (IoT) sensors to analytics tracking, there are plenty of tech vendors available to meet your organization’s needs when it comes to producing hydropower. To gear up for the digital transformation of green energy, let’s take a look at five vendors that can help you improve the efficiency of your Hydropower Plant (HPP).
We all dread having to find an empty parking space and perfecting vehicle maneuvers to avoid accidents. It brings great anxiety and cuts into the limited amount of time we have in a day. Fortunately, automatic parking, one of the most novel technology trends, can relieve a driver of these concerns. Cars with park assists have come a long way, from basic parking assist features to fully automated valet parking (AVP). Indeed, a self-parking car makes peoples’ lives much easier and is more convenient. These solutions even open the market for cars that can parallel park themselves.
5G is leaps and bounds ahead of previous network cellular generations, enabling Communication Service Providers (CSPs) to offer brand new types of services, applications, and use cases to consumers and enterprises. Network slicing is one such offering that is expected to define the 5G era. By 2030, ABI Research anticipates roughly US$67.5 billion in 5G slicing revenue and growth at a striking 62% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) between 2025 and the end of the forecast period.
What to Know About 5G Network Slicing in 2025:
- Network slicing adoption accelerates in 2025. After years of development, 5G network slicing is finally entering the spotlight. Verizon and T-Mobile have launched slicing services in the U.S., with offerings tailored to first responders and enterprise clients. China continues to be ahead of the curve, with consumer slicing packages available for as little as US$2 per month. These moves signal the start of global momentum for consumer network slicing. According to ABI Research, Asia-Pacific accounts for 91% of global spending on slicing solutions. That number will decrease to 73% by 2030 as less mature markets (especially North America and EMEA) catch up.
- Key enablers make network slicing possible now. Several factors have aligned to make network slicing practical: nearly all smartphones shipped after 2022 support 5G Standalone (SA), operators are upgrading to SA and 5G-Advanced, and telcos have gained the necessary enterprise experience from private networks and edge computing. Together, these advances set the stage for slicing to scale.
- Consumer slicing offers the biggest near-term win. The telecom industry has shifted its focus from enterprises to consumers. Consumer network slicing is proving to be the more immediate opportunity, although enterprise customers will drive more total revenue. Subscription plans that prioritize certain apps or guarantee better performance are easy to roll out, appeal to broad audiences, and quickly unlock new revenue streams.
- Enterprise slicing adoption faces major challenges. Manufacturers and other enterprise users are cautious of network slicing. These enterprises prioritize network security and reliability, which creates resistance to using public networks. Additionally, implementing Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and Quality of Service (QoS) guarantees has become more complex. Therefore, ABI Research expects widespread enterprise slicing to take longer to materialize than consumer slicing.
With the buildup of the metaverse, every company in the video games space should be aware of current and future demand in several domains. Due to the COVID-19 lockdowns, the gaming market was taken up to a new notch as demand exploded. For many people who had stopped playing video games or never played them before, the lockdowns gave rise to a hobby that they otherwise would have ignored, even after lockdown restrictions have been lifted. For people who were already avid gamers, their appetite for new content only grew.
By 2027, the smart home hardware market will be a US$18 billion opportunity in Asia-Pacific, an industry that has historically been dominated by the North American market and its vendors. However, that trend is over and vendors will increasingly have to adapt their smart home strategies and products in response to the impact of developing Chinese and Asia-Pacific smart home markets.