Dubai: The Dubai Metaverse Assembly, witnessed over 500 delegates participating, including government ministers, business leaders, global corporations, decision-makers and the metaverse community, to share insights on the metaverse and how to unlock its potential.
“We can access way more than just games and tokens, and make money from it. We can actually start solving climate problems,” said Haya Al Gussain of Evolve Network Club.
Day 2 included a panel on “the role of governments in virtual worlds”, hosted by Mina Al-Oraibi, editor-in-chief at The National. Among the most prominent speakers, was Alex Chehade, General Manager of Binance, MENA.
Chehade expressed his gratitude to Dubai for building such a Meta-friendly environment. He commented, “This reflects the government’s vision, by providing the opportunity to talk about the Metaverse, and by establishing entities such as the Dubai Virtual Asset regulatory (VARA), among others.”
“We need, to work with regulators and governments as the largest technology environment in the field of virtual assets in Metaverse. Since Binance is a user-focused platform, we need to protect our users by providing them with a platform that allows them to take part of the markets, digital assets, NFTs… without the need to know the complex mechanism of operations.“
But there was also another strong message from the 500 or so experts attending the inaugural Dubai Metaverse Assembly on the brave new world of Web 3.0 — and that was the need for regulation and preparation for what is to come.
There were fascinating glimpses of the future, such as the UAE Ministry of Economy’s metaverse headquarters where people can hold meetings and even sign legal documents.
Elsewhere at a government level, Gabriel Abed, ambassador of Barbados to the UAE, said his country is aiming to set up an embassy in the metaverse.
The virtual facility will ensure diplomatic parity, future-proofing national services, international coverage, immersive experiences, resource efficiency and a broader reach, he said.
These high-level services will require responsible actions by users and stringent regulation from those hosting them in the metaverse.
“The speed of the change of the market is astounding, but the vision is being set from the top down,” said Keith Jordan, vice president of innovation at Mastercard.
“Regulators and policymakers can either follow the market or lead the market. One country is saying 5 per cent of GDP [gross domestic product] will be driven by the metaverse by 2030 … we need to think what needs to be regulated. We have to look 5-10 years out and start building the policy for that.”
Dubai is setting “the global standard for regulation” with the emirate having this year launched the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority as the central authority for the global virtual asset industry, Mr. Jordan said.
“Innovation has to occur in a safe, regulated way. The next rate of change is going to be so fast.”