Amazon exec David Limp is missing the bigger metaverse picture
Amazon’s Head of Devices David Limp doesn’t understand the metaverse, according to Celia Van Wickel, Senior Director, Digital Commerce at Kantar.
In a recent article by The Verge, Limp criticised Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta vision and said that he didn’t want to live in a virtual world 24/7, or even a few hours a day.
“I want to try to work on technologies that bring people’s heads up, get them to enjoy the real world about them, make the family a more communal experience,” he stated.
In a LinkedIn post, Van Wickel commented: “David Limp appears to think that the metaverse is to live in a virtual world 24/7. Consumers don’t want to live in a metaverse. But because of the metaverse’s vast, futuristic, and numerous definitions, how can consumers say they want it?”
“Limp find’s Mark Zuckerberg’s metaverse long on vision, short on detail. He is focused on the here and now, looking to enhance real world connections. OK, I will say Limp in some ways is correct, but in other ways, he is missing the bigger picture.”
She added: “The metaverse no doubt will support a virtual world, but the virtual world and other components of the metaverse will support the here and now.”
“If it does not support the here and now, it may not meet the true vision. The ability to go cross-border and be in moments with friends and family is a component of the metaverse.”
Van Wickel said that she looks at her daughter and sees the potential here. For example, she will video chat with her best friend for hours while doing mundane tasks,. Her best friend has also joined her at the dinner table on her phone.
“Through the metaverse vision, one day her friend will go from video on the phone to perhaps virtually sitting with her at the dinner table. This would not prevent her from seeing her friend in real life too. My daughter has made friends in other cities that she could go play with and see more in a metaverse environment.”
Van Wickel concluded by noting that Amazon is included on the PUNK EFT supporting companies that may influence the metaverse, not Meta.
She wrote: “Amazon, I believe, will have to enable AR and VR elements and Web 3.0 for shopping. They are already doing this, such as the new Style store set to open and virtual fit technology,”
“it may not be in the same long-tail vision of Meta. Many do not agree with Zuckerberg, but I think components are possible whether Meta creates them or not.”
“The connections to be made are real. In fact, Amazon is big on long-tail vision, that is how they built Alexa and AWS.”
