Nissan and Toyota join European automakers in the metaverse

Various European automakers have announced they have been tapping into the metaverse. Japan-based Nissan Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corporation are the latest automakers to announce they are exploring options in the metaverse as well. 

According to reports, Nissan has entered into the metaverse with a virtual showroom that mirrors the automaker’s luxurious Nissan Crossing Showroom in Tokyo, Japan. The virtual reality offering uses Nissan’s invisible-to-visible technology interface, which the automaker has said: “merges the real world and virtual world to make information visible which the driver would not otherwise see.” Nissan reportedly plans on using the new development for events such as product launches. 

Toyota has also entered the metaverse, though it is currently using it for employees instead of customers. A Toyota representative told reporters, “With more people working from home because of the coronavirus, [Toyota is] providing young employees and others communication options within the company.” Toyota has developed virtual workspaces that allow employees to create individual avatars and interact with each other throughout the day, which includes attending meetings and corporate events. 

Other automakers have been tapping into the metaverse as well. Volkswagen released its first metaverse experience earlier this month, in which users play a virtual video game and are able to explore the features of the automaker’s new Polo model. Earlier this year, German automaker Mercedes Benz unveiled its first non-fungible token (NFT) that it created with ART2PEOPLE, and British automaker McLaren Automotive recently partnered with InfiniteWorld to develop digital content to be used in the metaverse. 

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