Herman Narula of Improbable joined Erik Brynjolfsson on October 24, 2022, for “The True Origin of the Metaverse and How It Will Change Our World.”

Herman Narula, CEO of Improbable and author of Virtual Society, explains why everything you have heard about the metaverse so far is wrong. Narula argues that the metaverse goes back thousands of years and that our digital future cannot be understood merely by glancing back at the digital technologies that have preceded it. Narula explains why the metaverse will and should matter to individuals and society.

Herman Narula is the co-founder and CEO of Improbable, a British metaverse technology company. Improbable partners with video game developers, entertainment companies, and defense and academic institutions to enable powerful, virtual worlds of unprecedented size and usefulness. This year, Improbable established M2 (MSquared), a network of interoperable metaverses powered by its Morpheus technology. M2 allows companies, brands, and creators to establish their own metaverses and Web3 businesses within its network, organize large-scale experiences with their communities involving thousands of active participants, and provide interoperability with existing blockchains and Web3 businesses.

Narula is the author of Virtual Society: The Metaverse and the New Frontiers of Human Experience, published by Penguin Random House on October 11, 2022. The book offers an exploration of the metaverse, its ancient origins, and how the exchange of value and ideas within and between virtual worlds will expand the possibilities of human life. Narula draws on deep, cross-disciplinary research in history, sociology, and psychology to show readers what the metaverse actually is, why it will matter, and why it’s here to stay.