How Accenture is Investing in the Metaverse
Today, virtually every leading brand is building its own strategy to leverage and access the metaverse environment. Accenture, a pioneering technology innovator, is one of the organizations leading the charge for new and transformative solutions, with extensive research, development, and partnerships.
Over the last couple of years, Accenture has conducted various studies into the potential of the metaverse. The company found around 55% of consumers see the metaverse as an exciting business opportunity, and 89% of C-executives believe the landscape will impact their future growth.
Building on these insights, Accenture has begun to develop its own dedicated vision for the metaverse, complete with a comprehensive selection of Metaverse tools and services for new companies looking to evolve their digital transformation strategy.
Accenture’s Metaverse Vision
Accenture has emerged as one of the core companies leading transitions towards the metaverse over the last couple of years. Back in 2021, the company ordered 60,000 Quest 2 Virtual Reality headsets to enhance its training and onboarding procedures. Accenture noted it believes the metaverse and XR technologies have the potential to transform the future of work.
To highlight its increasing focus on metaverse in opportunities, Accenture announced the development of the Metaverse Continuum in 2022. The initiative is based around the idea that the metaverse is a spectrum of digitally enhanced worlds, capable of serving various use cases.
According to Accenture, the metaverse has the potential to transform all aspects of life and business during the next decade, strengthening collaboration, creativity, and new opportunities for brands. The “Continuum” group will provide companies with access to cutting edge cloud, blockchain, and edge computing technologies, as they explore new metaverse economic models.
It also provides companies with insights collected from Accenture’s own metaverse environment “the Nth floor”, which has been developed in collaboration with Microsoft. For Accenture, the future of the Metaverse Continuum revolves around 4 key pillars:
- Making the synthetic authentic: Leveraging new forms of data collection and responsible AI to make synthetic content, digital twins, and metaverse experiences feel more immersive.
- Programmable worlds: Providing companies with the freedom to digitalize their environments, connecting various devices to different ecosystems, and leveraging intelligent systems for ambient computing, AR, 5G, and more.
- Computing the impossible: Accenture is investing heavily in the potential of non-conventional computing power. The company believes business across all sectors will need to access a variety of new and more advanced machines to push the limits of computing.
- Putting the me in Metaverse: Otherwise known as “WebMe”, Accenture’s metaverse vision involves creating a user-focused digital experience. The company believes in using the power of the metaverse to transform the experience of presence and human interactions.
Investing in Metaverse Opportunities
Aside from developing its own metaverse ecosystem and a range of services for businesses to access as they dive into the age of decentralization, Accenture has also invested in a variety of partnerships and new opportunities in recent years.
Most recently, the company announced a strategic investment in Forma Vision, a company committed to producing live-stream volumetric video tools, holographic assets, and RT3D solutions. The investment aims to assist Forma Vision in the creation of a low-cost, and flexible enterprise metaverse environment, and is delivered through Accenture’s “Project Spotlight” venture.
Forma Vision isn’t the first company Accenture has supported in the metaverse space. In March 2022, the company made another strategic investment in the enterprise software company Inrupt, to support the development of decentralized digital experiences. A month later, in April, Accenture also dedicated funding to Strivr, a provider of virtual reality-based immersive learning and training solutions for enterprises.
During October, Accenture started a partnership with global company Mars, to transform its global manufacturing operations with AI, digital twins, and cloud edge technology. The initiative aims to assist Mars in training and supporting teams through metaverse-style experiences which prioritize education and immersion. At the end of the year, the technology innovators at Accenture also invested in BehaVR, a leader in digital wellness and therapeutics experiences.
The investment was revealed on the same day BehaVR announced a merger with a spin-out company from Oxford University (OxfordVR). Accenture is planning on supporting the brand as it starts its quest towards building healthcare, and science-focused experiences in the metaverse.
Building a Metaverse Environment
Ever since Accenture invested in building its own metaverse-style recruitment and onboarding experience with VR, the company has been rapidly developing its focus on the metaverse. For a few years now, the company has been offering a range of end-to-end XR solutions for immersive learning, virtual merchandising, and ecommerce. Investing in the metaverse will allow Accenture to build on its current portfolio, and drive businesses towards new opportunities.
Accenture is even working alongside other market-leading groups and initiatives to help draw attention to the potential of the metaverse in various environments. In 2023, Accenture and Microsoft partnered with the World Economic Forum, to create a prototype of a new “Global Collaboration Village”, where organizations and employees can learn about and collaborate on global challenges.
Accenture joined countless other leading organizations to help shape the village’s development, and present it to participants around the world during an interactive, multi-lateral event session.
What’s Next for Accenture in the Metaverse?
Accenture clearly believes in the power of the metaverse, and the potential it has to offer today’s brands. Today, the company is investing in numerous case studies and research strategies, to help understand the challenges and opportunities facing metaverse environments.
Not only does Accenture believe in creating a powerful metaverse environment for modern brands, but it’s also committed to a future of responsible, human-centric digital experiences. The company even offers services designed to help companies shape and plan inclusive metaverse ecosystems, and experiment with new tools like NFTs, tokens, and the blockchain.
At present, Accenture boasts around 245 metaverse-related pilots and proof of concept solutions built at Accenture Labs, as well as more than 600 patents filed within the Metaverse Continuum.
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