Shanghai Aims to Grow a $52 Billion Metaverse Cluster by 2025

The Government of the city of Shanghai has proposed a group of guidelines to help it shift into a metaverse power. The plan of action defines each one of the technologies that the municipality needs to focus on to achieve the goals of building a $52 billion metaverse economy, while at the same time helping to establish 10 innovative companies in the area.

Shanghai Establishes Metaverse Development Plan

The metaverse is emerging as a technology that is attracting the interest of major countries and cities in the world. Shanghai, the largest city in China by population, has issued a document where it presents a plan to turn itself into an important center for metaverse industry activities. One of the main goals of this focus is to grow a $52 billion metaverse cluster in the city.

To this end, the city plans to house at least 10 innovative leading enterprises in the metaverse industry, and 100 companies that present metaverse-related technologies, all of these with international reach. The document proposes a series of tasks to achieve this goal, which includes adding a digital component to different activities and sectors, such as the existence of virtual businesses, education with virtual reality, and tourism and entertainment with a virtual element.

Investing In the Metaverse

While the document issued does not specify directly how much the city plans to invest to reach the desired goal, it does mention that the government would have to establish a series of special funds to support metaverse industries, offering investment subsidies, interest discounts, and other incentives in accordance with laws and regulations to support technology research and development.

The document also mentions a series of technologies, including display and processor tech, as some of the core technologies that should be advanced to achieve a better metaverse in the future. In the same way, data transmission technologies like 5G and artificial intelligence are also mentioned in the plan.

Other countries have been interested in the concept of the metaverse as well, including South Korea, which presented a plan to invest $177 million into metaverse-related projects as part of the “Digital New Deal,” a national plan to modernize the country. Dubai is also moving to make its government metaverse ready, to give the opportunity to its citizens of having the experience of a virtual reality government.