With the rapid development of science and technology, avatars, as an emerging concept, have gradually come into the public’s field of vision and triggered widespread attention and discussion. Especially in the context of the increasingly hot concept of meta-universe, avatars are regarded as a bridge connecting reality and the virtual world, and their potential commercial value has been infinitely enlarged. However, in the midst of this boom, we cannot help but ask: does the real explosion of avatars really need to be accompanied by the maturity of the metaverse? How to distinguish between the bubble and the opportunity behind it?
I. The Rise of Virtual People and the Promotion of Generation Z
The rise of virtual people is closely related to the rise of Generation Z. As a new generation of consumer force, Generation Z’s aesthetics, values and consumption habits are very different from those of previous generations. They pursue personalized, virtualized and immersive experiences, and avatars are the best carrier to meet these needs. From Luo Tianyi on the Spring Festival Gala and the Winter Olympics stage, to the emergence of Liu Night Xi, virtual people are gradually becoming part of mainstream culture, attracting more and more attention and pursuit.
II. Capital Wind and Market Frenzy
Under the impetus of the Generation Z crowd, the avatar market is rapidly heating up, attracting a large amount of capital influx. According to incomplete statistics, the year 2021 saw 16 investments related to virtual digital people, with financing amounts ranging from millions of yuan to tens of millions of dollars. Entering 2022, the financing in the field of virtual people is even more of a blowout, with a cumulative financing of more than 400 million yuan in the first month of the year alone. The frenzy of the market has allowed many entrepreneurs and capital to see the business opportunities, and have flocked to the field of virtual people, hoping to get a share of the pie.
However, in the frenzy of the market, there is no lack of speculation and the existence of bubbles. In order to seize the first opportunity, many companies have “virtual people”, “digital people” and other labels on their own, trying to attract the attention of consumers through marketing means. However, in reality, these companies often only stay at the surface level, lacking real technical strength and innovation. They take advantage of consumers’ curiosity about science and technology and the pursuit of freshness to induce consumers to buy their products through false propaganda and exaggeration, so as to obtain profits.
III. Technical Bottlenecks and Limitations of Virtual People
Although the virtual human market seems to be prosperous, but in fact still faces many technical bottlenecks and limitations. Most of the virtual human products on the market are driven by real people + motion capture + special effects processing technology, although the visual effect can reach a certain level, but there is still a lot of room for improvement in interactivity and intelligence. In addition, the application scene of virtual man is also relatively limited, mainly focusing on the idol field and marketing field, lacking a wider range of practical applications.
IV. The Relationship Between Meta-universe and Virtual Man
The concept of meta-universe is frequently mentioned in the avatar craze. Many people believe that the real outbreak of virtual people needs to be accompanied by the maturity of the meta-universe. However, the meta-universe itself is a huge ecosystem, and its maturity needs time and accumulation of technology. Currently, the metaverse is still in the exploratory stage, and many of its technologies and applications are not yet mature. Therefore, it may be too optimistic to pin the development of VMs on the maturity of the metaverse.
V. Bubble and Opportunity Coexist
Although there are bubbles and speculation in the virtual human market, there are also huge opportunities. With the continuous progress of technology and the continuous expansion of application scenarios, virtual people will play an important role in more fields. For example, in the field of education, the virtual man can be used as a virtual teacher to provide personalized tutoring for students; in the medical field, the virtual man can be used as a virtual doctor to provide remote diagnosis and treatment services for patients; in the field of entertainment, the virtual man can provide a more immersive experience for the audience. The realization of these application scenarios will promote the further development of the virtual human market.
As an emerging field, the development prospect of virtual people is still full of uncertainty. In the frenzy of the market, we need to maintain rational thinking and identify bubbles and opportunities. At the same time, the government, enterprises and all walks of life need to work together to promote the development and application of virtual human technology, laying a solid foundation for the future development of the digital economy and virtual world.
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