McKinsey on the Metaverse

While the end-state remains many years away, there is real and significant value for consumers and companies to benefit from today.

LinkedIn Twitter Facebook
Article - McKinsey Quarterly

A CEO’s guide to the metaverse
– It’s too big to ignore—yet its future is far from certain. Companies need to dip a toe in the water and plan to take the plunge... should developments warrant.
Interactive

Value creation in the metaverse
– With its potential to generate up to $5 trillion in value by 2030, the metaverse is too big for companies to ignore.
Article

The metaverse: Driving value in the mobility sector
– Although a fully immersive, interconnected metaverse remains years away, mobility stakeholders can already capture real business... value from the technologies designed to enable it.
Interactive - McKinsey Quarterly

Make way for the metaverse
– The metaverse is morphing—and investments in the space are growing. Are you making the right moves?
Article

Even in the metaverse, women remain locked out of leadership roles
– Five early indicators on women in the metaverse reveal gender inequality—especially in the leadership creating and setting... metaverse standards.
Interactive

Digital twins: The foundation of the enterprise metaverse
– Companies can leverage digital twins in a way that delivers significant value today—while building the engine for the enterprise... metaverse of tomorrow.
Article

Web3 beyond the hype
– While buffeted by the recent market downturn and bankruptcies, digital assets and the technologies underlying them still have... the potential to transform business models across sectors.
Article

What is the metaverse?
– The metaverse is the emerging 3-D-enabled digital space that uses virtual reality, augmented reality, and other advanced internet... and semiconductor technology to allow people to have lifelike personal and business experiences online.

Metaverse Talks

Interview - Metaverse Talks

Building an open metaverse
– Niantic CEO John Hanke says the promise of the metaverse is massive, but there are technological and financial hills to climb.... An edited version of the conversation from our ‘Value creation in the metaverse’ report follows.
Video - Metaverse Talks

Fashion-forward in the metaverse
– Irene-Marie Seelig, co-founder and CEO of AnamXR, says the metaverse is tailor-made for fashion brands looking to help people... clothe their digital personas. An edited version of the conversation from our ‘Value creation in the metaverse’ report follows.
Video - Metaverse Talks

Building a creator economy
– Marc Petit, Vice President of Unreal Engine Ecosystem at Epic Games, is optimistic about the promise of the metaverse, which he... says will depend on real-time streaming of interactive, 3D content. An edited version of the conversation from our ‘Value creation in the metaverse’ report follows.
Video - Metaverse Talks

Appealing to a broader audience
– Ken Wee, chief strategy officer at Activision Blizzard, says despite the explosion of the market addressable by the metaverse,... a true unlock has yet to occur to draw in a larger non-game-endemic audience. An edited version of the conversation from our ‘Value creation in the metaverse’ report follows.
Video - Metaverse Talks

Exploring the business promise of the metaverse
– Brian Solis, Salesforce global innovation evangelist, sees curiosity and empathy as integral parts in delivering new experiences... in the metaverse. An edited version of the conversation from our ‘Value creation in the metaverse’ report follows.
Interview - Metaverse Talks

Gaming for a cause
– Square Enix CEO Yosuke Matsuda shares his expansive vision for the Japanese entertainment and video game company, one that includes... solving societal problems and greater user empowerment. An edited version of the conversation from our ‘Value creation in the metaverse’ report follows.
Video - Metaverse Talks

Building a safer metaverse
– Rob Lowe, former managing director of Digital Play at LEGO Ventures, discusses the enormous opportunities presented by emerging... technology and end-user democratization. An edited version of the conversation from our ‘Value creation in the metaverse’ report follows.

40+

metaverse-related projects completed in 2022

(spanning from strategy to product development)

10+

external alliances

in our Metaverse ecosystem

350+

business-building projects

More Insights

Blog Post

The colors of the metaverse
– “Color is the place where our brain and the universe meet,” said Paul Cézanne, whose impressionistic strokes... are the stuff of legends and iterate on beauty in a myriad of ways. Cézanne’s genius was in articulating expression through color, and in reflecting on color he seemed to understand it to be the place where we cognitively connect with the beauty, essence, and vibrancy of our broader world.
Article

Even in the metaverse, women remain locked out of leadership roles
– Five early indicators on women in the metaverse reveal gender inequality—especially in the leadership creating and setting... metaverse standards.
Interactive

Digital twins: The foundation of the enterprise metaverse
– Companies can leverage digital twins in a way that delivers significant value today—while building the engine for the enterprise... metaverse of tomorrow.
Webcast

Value creation in the metaverse
– The metaverse revolution is coming soon, and companies must prepare today to seize the opportunities of tomorrow.
Blog Post

Let’s meet in the metaverse
– The metaverse—a virtual-reality space in which users can interact—is a far-off concept for some consumers and industry... experts who anticipate it will be a fleeting fad.
Interview - McKinsey Quarterly

‘Find the smartest technologist in the company and make them CEO’
– In the first episode of the new The Quarterly Interview: Provocations to Ponder series, Silicon Valley’s... Marc Andreessen tackles tech trends like artificial intelligence, crypto, and Web3—and why incumbents still have a tough time competing with digital start-ups.
Blog Post

Meet the metaverse: Creating real value in a virtual world
– McKinsey senior partners Eric Hazan and Lareina Yee, both lead authors on our new metaverse report, discuss the potential and... momentum around this rapidly evolving space.
Article

Probing reality and myth in the metaverse
– Despite some skepticism, our recent insights show that Americans of all ages are ready to embrace the metaverse.
Article - McKinsey Quarterly

Marketing in the metaverse: An opportunity for innovation and experimentation
– Although widespread adoption of the metaverse may take some time, leading brands are already rewriting the rules of marketing.
Article

How the fashion industry can get into a metaverse mindset
– Shoppers, particularly those in Gen Z, are spending more time online and exploring the possibilities of the metaverse. Here’s... what fashion and luxury players need to know about this emerging frontier.
Podcast - McKinsey Global Institute

Forward Thinking on tech and the unpredictability of prediction with Benedict Evans
– One of the tech world’s sharpest analysts talks about the frontier and how we got here, connecting the metaverse, Web3,... and crypto with everyone from industrialist Henry Ford to writer Voltaire to historian Hugh Trevor-Roper.
Podcast

The promise and peril of the metaverse
– The metaverse has the potential to radically transform the digital—and global—economy, but many questions remain.
Podcast

What is the metaverse—and what does it mean for business?
– No official definition yet exists for the metaverse, but companies can’t afford to wait until one does or the metaverse... fully evolves to start experimenting and investing in it.

Connect with our metaverse team

Contact

Our leaders

Hamza Khan
Partner , London
Coleads the Marketing & Sales Practice in the UK and Ireland; leads digital and growth transformations in both B2C and B2B environments.
Eric Hazan
Senior Partner, Paris
Coleads the Marketing & Sales Practice in Western Europe and brings extensive knowledge of strategic marketing, as well as digital...
Matt Higginson
Partner, Boston
Leads our customer assistance work in North America and distributed-ledger technology (blockchain) initiatives globally
Chau Nguyen
Partner, Singapore
Leads McKinsey Design across Asia–Pacific, and is a core leader in McKinsey Digital; supports clients across a wide range of sectors
Shivam Srivastava
Partner, Bay Area - Silicon Valley
Provides product expertise to software companies around the world
Lareina Yee
Senior Partner, Bay Area
Advises technology companies on growth and organization transformation; a leading expert in gender and diversity, she became the...