For now, video games and AR/VR are two precursors of the metaverse that offer marketers a chance to experiment.

Underpinning all the buzz is the very real potential for AR/VR to fundamentally change how consumers interact with brands and shop, both online and in person.

On today's episode, we discuss whether augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) will rival the smartphone as the next big platform, the impact of 3D advertising, how in-store shopping habits have changed, whether there really is an attention economy slowdown, what to do about inflation, an unpopular opinion about video chats, which way people fold their arms, and more. Tune in to the discussion with our senior director of Briefings Stephanie Taglianetti, director of forecasting Oscar Orozco, and analyst Dave Frankland.

This year will be marked by a little bit of the old and a little bit of the new. While consumers give in-store shopping another go, augmented reality (AR) will help bridge the gap between the physical and digital worlds. Our analysts have already covered the biggest trends of 2023, but here are four more predictions for what's to come next year.

Chinese companies can learn much about metaverse from US counterparts: Heavy tech regulations in the country have slowed tech firm’s ventures into the virtual world.

Retailers have long had an eye on augmented reality (AR), but it still has unrealized potential for shopping purposes.

Dive deeper: Read Insider Intelligence’s Future of Meta forecast, which covers opportunities in advertising, creators, social commerce, payments, virtual currency, and the metaverse.

Only 13% of US adults have used augmented reality (AR) or virtual reality (VR) while shopping. Though the overwhelming majority have not, 38% are at least somewhat interested in trying the tech.

On today's episode, we discuss whether Americans are becoming more price-sensitive, how Amazon's second Prime Day went, whether augmented reality is about more than having fun, what to expect from Netflix's "immersive" shopping experience, how delivery robots are kind of already here, an explanation of the holiday shopping trends we are paying the most attention to, where the song “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” came from, and more. Tune in to the discussion with our director of reports editing Rahul Chadha and analysts Blake Droesch and Suzy Davidkhanian.

On today's episode, we discuss which shopping channel will make the biggest splash in 2022, where augmented reality will be, and how much online shopping will grow next year. We then talk about Heinz's limited edition plantable labels and whether people will pay $700 for an A&W jacket. Tune in to the discussion with eMarketer principal analyst at Insider Intelligence Suzy Davidkhanian.

Apple can also use this integration to develop its own VR or AR fitness service for its future goggles. The bigger picture: This is the first major integration for Meta’s Oculus Quest 2 outside the metaverse and it is in an area that resonates with consumers and which they don’t mind spending on.

The vision of augmented reality (AR) headsets replacing smartphones could become a reality sooner than expected in China. Advances in hardware and new AR commerce use cases are paving the way.

On today's episode, we discuss what the next big augmented reality (AR) experience might be, the Trojan horse of self-service retail, whether podcasting has a "hit" problem, the NFL's 2021 regular season ratings, a possible delivery drone milestone, an unpopular opinion about consumer choice, robot referees, and more. Tune in to the discussion with our analysts Oscar Orozco, Peter Vahle, and Blake Droesch.

Snap in survival mode: Snap is laying off some of its augmented reality hardware and software talent, stalling years of innovation and putting its leadership position in AR at risk.

ES: Pricing, performance, and ease of use dictated who owned the market in the early days of personal computing. Today, VR ecosystems and platforms continue that trend as the metaverse takes shape: Consumers, developers, and content producers will eventually decide the future of the metaverse, but they will be limited by hardware’s capabilities. We look at the state of VR hardware, the key players, and how gaming could serve as a gateway to VR/AR adoption.

That could mean implementing tools like augmented reality (AR) try-on tech, or simply showing what an item looks like on a diverse array of bodies. Making this process easier will allow consumers to feel more secure in their purchases and could make even the most price-conscious shopper decide to pull the trigger.

Google ramps up mobile AR efforts: This could be the push for Google Glass for the masses, opening up competition with Meta and Apple’s wider AR and VR.

This makes it challenging for any one company to create affordable headsets while developing new and compelling use cases for VR and AR. What’s next? Big Tech companies are in the best position to develop VR hardware while building immersive virtual-reality worlds and experiences.

The news: Augmented reality (AR) surgery platform Proximie raised $80 million, pushing its total funding to date to $130 million. Here’s how it works: Proximie’s platform lets surgeons virtually “scrub in” to operating rooms to share their skills in real time.

The timing for opening up Horizon Worlds is right: GAME research revealed last month that VR and AR searches have risen 5,800% in the past year with Meta-owned products as the key items being searched, indicating peak interest in the metaverse.

Meta could have created its own AR/VR OS but chose to use a modified version of Google’s Android: Short-term convenience could lead to long-term problems in the metaverse.

To reduce the likelihood of returns, companies should leverage augmented reality and/or virtual reality to give shoppers a better sense of how a product looks before they buy. Analyzing return data can help retailers determine how much product to stock and reduce their environmental impact.

Alibaba’s B2B workspace app DingTalk plans to introduce AR glasses for virtual meetings, per South China Morning Post. Virtual influencer Dong Dong—one of many introduced recently who are forecast to be a big part of the metaverse—made her debut via the company’s Taobao shopping app during the Winter Olympic.

The virtual world will change the way consumers in China interact online and shop.