What The Future

REALITY

Reality

How we define and experience reality is constantly evolving as technologies to shape and use it become more powerful. This What the Future: Reality issue explores what will that mean for so...

The missing use case for virtual experiences​

Gaming expert and media technology researcher Jonathan Stringfield explains what gaming can teach brands about the future of reality.

How brands can fit into new realities

Web3 trailblazer Lindsey McInerney explains how virtual worlds could change the game for creatives, consumers, and brands.

Getting virtual commerce past ‘If you build it, they will come’

Josh Shabtai of Lowe's Innovation Labs thinks skill building (and a DIY mindset and tools) could push virtual commerce to the next level.

Why immersive worlds shouldn’t be virtual versions of real life

Meta's Asher Rapkin on the future of the metaverse and its creative potential — from good commerce to good art.

Here’s who should govern the virtual web

As more of us step into virtual worlds, will human problems follow? Author and investor Matthew Ball discusses how we might regulate the metaverse.

How inclusion can help immersive media scale

Cathy Li, the World Economic Forum’s head of media, entertainment, and sports, discusses why the metaverse must value accessibility and inclusion from the start.

Will viewers cross over to immersive content?

New technologies could transform the interactivity between TV, film, and audiences, says Warner Bros. Discovery's Vera Chien.

How humans can hold back tech-enabled disinformation

Andy Carvin of the Atlantic Council explains the real-world stakes of virtual disinformation — and why real people are key to solving it.