Historically, people of color have fallen behind in the wake of technological advancement. From the dawn of the consumer web, to Web 2.0 — The technical gap that forms from the lack of speed to adopt, leverage and forward technology within the black community is always problematic. There are a vast amount of reasons why this happens, however; at the forefront of the reasons, there rest the simple idea that as a people we are in large part “consumers” of technology and we are usually 3–5 years behind when it comes to seeing the business application of the tech we consume.

Through the evolutionary cycles of the internet, we have seen two very defined shifts in how we leverage its resources. The first was the shift from Institutional/science based use to what I like to call the “consumer web”. We went from HUGE interconnected servers that connected with each other to exchange scientific research or data between people and organizations. The internet was NOT sexy, and there was very little consideration around design, because at that time design was just a “nice to have”. The consumer web delivered on the promise design, commerce and consumer facing tools and applications. While information was still a major part of the internets narrative, the ability to “transact” was the primary “business” application. This was the “username and password” internet … The next shift took us from somewhat basic interactions from peer to peer, to deeper more immersive interactions in what became “Web 2.0” OR the “Social Web” — Platforms like MySpace, Twitter, and Facebook gave us the ability to engage at scale, build communities and leverage the internets capability to reach millions/billions of people almost effortlessly transforming media forever — redefining the news and entertainment. This was the “sign-in with your social account” internet… Now, we are in the sunrise of yet another shift, and probably one of the most profound of all. The transition from Web 2.0 — to the immersive, decentralized, spatial, blockchain powered internet OR “Metaverse” is an almost 180 degree shift from the predecessors. An internet with autonomy, decentralization, privacy, control and persistent ambience built right in. THIS shift requires new vocabulary, understanding of new technology layers, and protocols that did NOT exist in prior iterations. This is the “connect your wallet” internet.

“Wealth creation, community building, product development, entertainment, digital Identities and beyond are happening in the digital and physical world simultaneously. Any leader who isn’t preparing and understanding the next frontier and language of the world as it shifts to the metaverse will be irrelevant.”

Hajj Flemings, Founder of Rebrand Cities

Getting Ahead of The Meta Divide

Prior to now, the technology gap that rest between people of color and their white counterparts was called “the digital divide”. The digital divide has been a persistent economic challenge within the black community. From the small business owners lack of a business website, to the average consumer not knowing the difference between a website URL and email address, some of the most basic concepts that ground the ability to see economic opportunity derived from the internet, the black community has in large part, fallen behind. While it’s a common knowledge at large that this is a challenge, the speed of innovation happening across the digital domain makes efforts feel pale in face of an evolving world. In comes Web 3.0 with concepts 2 to 3 times more complex than the first two iterations to understand and we find ourselves standing at the gateway of a potential economic tragedy so herculean that the idea of “catching up” after falling behind will be laughable at best. How we use and build the internet in the very near future (3–4 years) will be as foreign to just a year ago as the United States and Soviet Union. Sark and radical change is in-front of us.

“The staggering divide in the numbers we found was when it came to race, especially in urban areas, with Black and Hispanic communities 10 years behind the white community for the last 20 years. Combine that with the rapid digitization and automation of the U.S. economy, and that gap could eventually mean large numbers of Black and Hispanic American workers could be disqualified or underprepared for 86% of jobs in the U.S. by 2045.”

- Deutsche Bank Global Technology Strategist Apjit Walia

The Meta Divide will displace people in a very disruptive way, from re-classification, to elimination, to inaccessibility. With the rise of Web 3.0 you also have the emergence of widespread adoption of Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and Automation. The “divide” that we face today, that seems insurmountable is a fraction of the gap that will be created by this shift — its like comparing a divide as wide as a few city blocks to an entire state.

We have to be mindful as we move forward. We must be willing to champion information, share the insight and tools to mitigate the disruption coming over the next decade.

Vincent Hunt is an American Entrepreneur and Experience Architect (XA). With over two decades of experience in the digital domain, Hunt’s work weaves experience architecture, and the rapidly emerging ideas, concepts, and technologies collectively known as the metaverse, to deliver moments of truth (MOT) across multiple-realities for visionary brands.

A charismatic communicator and businessman, Hunt writes, and speaks about the importance of creative intelligence, innovation, post-industrial economy leadership, and the future.

Historically, people of color have fallen behind in the wake of technological advancement. From the dawn of the consumer web, to Web 2.0 — The technical gap that forms from the lack of speed to adopt, leverage and forward technology within the black community is always problematic. There are a vast amount of reasons why this happens, however; at the forefront of the reasons, there rest the simple idea that as a people we are in large part “consumers” of technology and we are usually 3–5 years behind when it comes to seeing the business application of the tech we consume.

Through the evolutionary cycles of the internet, we have seen two very defined shifts in how we leverage its resources. The first was the shift from Institutional/science based use to what I like to call the “consumer web”. We went from HUGE interconnected servers that connected with each other to exchange scientific research or data between people and organizations. The internet was NOT sexy, and there was very little consideration around design, because at that time design was just a “nice to have”. The consumer web delivered on the promise design, commerce and consumer facing tools and applications. While information was still a major part of the internets narrative, the ability to “transact” was the primary “business” application. This was the “username and password” internet … The next shift took us from somewhat basic interactions from peer to peer, to deeper more immersive interactions in what became “Web 2.0” OR the “Social Web” — Platforms like MySpace, Twitter, and Facebook gave us the ability to engage at scale, build communities and leverage the internets capability to reach millions/billions of people almost effortlessly transforming media forever — redefining the news and entertainment. This was the “sign-in with your social account” internet… Now, we are in the sunrise of yet another shift, and probably one of the most profound of all. The transition from Web 2.0 — to the immersive, decentralized, spatial, blockchain powered internet OR “Metaverse” is an almost 180 degree shift from the predecessors. An internet with autonomy, decentralization, privacy, control and persistent ambience built right in. THIS shift requires new vocabulary, understanding of new technology layers, and protocols that did NOT exist in prior iterations. This is the “connect your wallet” internet.

“Wealth creation, community building, product development, entertainment, digital Identities and beyond are happening in the digital and physical world simultaneously. Any leader who isn’t preparing and understanding the next frontier and language of the world as it shifts to the metaverse will be irrelevant.”

Hajj Flemings, Founder of Rebrand Cities

Getting Ahead of The Meta Divide

Prior to now, the technology gap that rest between people of color and their white counterparts was called “the digital divide”. The digital divide has been a persistent economic challenge within the black community. From the small business owners lack of a business website, to the average consumer not knowing the difference between a website URL and email address, some of the most basic concepts that ground the ability to see economic opportunity derived from the internet, the black community has in large part, fallen behind. While it’s a common knowledge at large that this is a challenge, the speed of innovation happening across the digital domain makes efforts feel pale in face of an evolving world. In comes Web 3.0 with concepts 2 to 3 times more complex than the first two iterations to understand and we find ourselves standing at the gateway of a potential economic tragedy so herculean that the idea of “catching up” after falling behind will be laughable at best. How we use and build the internet in the very near future (3–4 years) will be as foreign to just a year ago as the United States and Soviet Union. Sark and radical change is in-front of us.

“The staggering divide in the numbers we found was when it came to race, especially in urban areas, with Black and Hispanic communities 10 years behind the white community for the last 20 years. Combine that with the rapid digitization and automation of the U.S. economy, and that gap could eventually mean large numbers of Black and Hispanic American workers could be disqualified or underprepared for 86% of jobs in the U.S. by 2045.”

- Deutsche Bank Global Technology Strategist Apjit Walia

The Meta Divide will displace people in a very disruptive way, from re-classification, to elimination, to inaccessibility. With the rise of Web 3.0 you also have the emergence of widespread adoption of Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and Automation. The “divide” that we face today, that seems insurmountable is a fraction of the gap that will be created by this shift — its like comparing a divide as wide as a few city blocks to an entire state.

We have to be mindful as we move forward. We must be willing to champion information, share the insight and tools to mitigate the disruption coming over the next decade.

Vincent Hunt is an American Entrepreneur and Experience Architect (XA). With over two decades of experience in the digital domain, Hunt’s work weaves experience architecture, and the rapidly emerging ideas, concepts, and technologies collectively known as the metaverse, to deliver moments of truth (MOT) across multiple-realities for visionary brands.

A charismatic communicator and businessman, Hunt writes, and speaks about the importance of creative intelligence, innovation, post-industrial economy leadership, and the future.