Metaverse is a concept being looked at as something that has the potential to be a constant in the world of variables today. The exciting Metaverse opportunities in the automotive industry are luring to give customers a taste of pomp and circumstance on the way to services that have become monotonous by now. To ‘verse’ about ‘meta’ in the automotive market, many famous brands can be seen being a part of a virtual world investment nowadays.
Automoti’ve’rse
Recently, Maruti Suzuki made headlines when they announced ‘Nexaverse‘ a virtual showroom that launched the Grand Vitara for customers to experience the luxury of an SUV digitally.
Without any twists or turns, let’s drive straight towards the vision of this virtual world.
The Nexaverse gives people an entry into a virtual Maruti Suzuki showroom where the user can walk in through the virtual avatar selected. With a lot of personalities to select from, a fun match is sure to make the experience even more exciting. Once the user walks in, the Grand Vitara can be seen standing tall from the entrance. The user can then walk towards it, check the features of the car and decide to visit the website for more details or book a test drive straight away depending on the preference.
It has been reported that Maruti Suzuki will spend 15% of its annual innovation budget on Metaverse showrooms.
DaveAI is the platform powering Nexaverse for Maruti Suzuki India Limited.
Advertising
Metaverse is proving to be a great strategy for advertising in the automotive industry. Why? Because a large portion of the world population today comes under ‘digitally savvy’ customers. Curiosity is another factor pushing people to see what the brand has to offer in collaboration with technology. The fresh flavour of variety and innovation is the driving force amongst people that is helping the concept of Metaverse find acceptance amongst the crowd. So with an assurance to cater to the needs and tastes of consumers of every type, the virtual world is proving to be more than just a hype.
The Metaverse presents opportunities for brands to introduce the Midas touch to advertising. Personalization is the Midas touch in advertising today. Instead of targeting only a single type of consumer, the Metaverse can target all categories at once. Market researcher. Amiable buyer. Spendthrift. Driver buyer. All of them. The Metaverse journey can signify assent to a personalized experience once the user registers to the platform.
Manufacturing
The use of technology in manufacturing minimizes the load on resources required, reduces production time, improves quality, and enhances the efficiency of design processes. Adopting digital twin technologies and using AI to harness the power of data is helping make better decisions and prepare for the future. Value from data enhances the efficiency of each department.
BMW is using the Omniverse developed by Nvidia, to set up a virtual factory and optimize processes to open doors for smart manufacturing. Product personalization, robotics programming on the shop floor and car configurations are a part of this strategy. Model customization denotes customer preferences and sharing details with the team in real-time speeds up the production process.
Kawasaki has joined Microsoft’s Metaverse initiative. This motorcycle manufacturer will be a part of the HoloLens strategy that will be used to connect with workers on site and increase efficiency with the help of AR. The idea is to create a digital twin of the workplace which can help accelerate production processes.
Selling
Reaching out to people is becoming easier with the rise in such technologies. Showing different models of cars and bikes in real life like atmosphere instead of photos, videos, and brochures will help the sales team connect with a larger audience and convert potential clients to existing customers in no time. Explaining the details would become easier as they say visual and tactile recall is stronger than auditory recognition. With an enhancement to the website visit, in Metaverse, users can get the feel of the car or a bike and understand performance on different types of roads instead of a quick test drive in the nearby area. This will help satisfy user demands and put the user on the customer list.
Hyundai has partnered with Roblox to enhance CX and create a virtual world where the users can interact, get acquainted with products, and be a part of various fun activities.
Entertainment on wheels
Entertainment is that obvious part of Metaverse that has people eyeing the virtual world opportunities with a rose-tinted glass. In-car entertainment has evolved over the years with technology making its way in this domain. Nowadays, the use of AR can be seen seeping into the infotainment systems that the cars come equipped with. WayRay has been in news for developing the Holograktor. The Holograktor is powered by AR and is a concept car.
With Metaverse playing in the big leagues, in-car entertainment is sure to showcase fun on screens. Oh no, wait. Holograms! Imagine a car ride in the Metaverse where you as a passenger feel like listening to ‘Whatever It Takes’ but then just get to see the pop band ‘Imagine Dragons’ playing in front of you and you get to be a part of their concert. Exciting right? Technology can make this real. AR overlays can help join friends on fun trips or accompany loved ones on long journeys from home. Touring places on the bucket list through avatars can become possible. The advancement in entertainment ventures will also bring in the possibility of various educational and social programs. Utilizing time to learn a skill, meet a friend or even work while travelling will bring in a positive change that would help accomplish a lot more in life. Happy customers can then help brands witness good investment returns by sustaining clients.
Holoride; a startup backed by Audi is designing XR-powered entertainment systems for passengers during travel with a vision to turn every ride into a theme park like experience.
NFT is another point of attraction for customers today. McLaren is creating NFTs that represent its supercars to offer customers access to special privileges.
The destination
The scope of metaverse in automotive industry is immense. The involvement of Metaverse in Auto commerce is seeing different use cases from different brands showcasing the fact that targeting consumer preferences and business requirements can bring in combined benefits of the real and the virtual world. Creating showrooms in the Metaverse to complete the sales processes digitally and then delivering the car in reality to selling virtual rides with the help of cryptocurrency, the Metaverse is sure to add that tinge of salt to a rather bland experience known as monotony. Not just sales but other departments like marketing and manufacturing are also seeing the use of Metaverse and this phenomenon has clawed its way into every industry and life today just like the internet did a few decades back. Looking at the destination to reach with the virtual world existence, the evolution will be strong enough to change the way of living of people, and opportunities to raise standards would be immense.
