Shanghai includes metaverse in city plans
2 min read
Although China has banned cryptocurrencies from its territory, the Asian nation is increasingly embracing non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and now the metaverse. Shanghai, China’s most populous city, has announced that it is looking at ways to use a metaverse in public services over the next five years.
Metaverse in Shanghai plans
According to city leaders, the region is building a development plan through its Economics and Information Technology department. The objective is to understand how the city can develop applications aimed at the metaverse.
Managers want to use technology to promote public services, business offices, social leisure, industrial manufacturing, production safety and electronic games.
Furthermore, they plan to encourage further studies and development of access and interaction technologies. This includes blockchain-based sensors, glasses, chips, and use cases.
Technology has become an area of interest for many major companies in recent months. In October, Facebook changed its name to Meta in order to bet on the term’s popularity.
Despite the Chinese warning about NFTs, more than 1,000 companies have filed thousands of trademark applications relating to the concept.
More than 1,360 Chinese companies have applied for 8,534 trademarks, according to the South China Morning Post.
Among them Baidu, Tencent and Alibaba are in the process of developing metaverse technologies.
Last week, Baidu launched its XiRang metaverse app, which will be fully released in six years.
Earlier, in March, China’s State Council released its five-year development plan. The plan includes many of these same exploration fronts, in addition to the incorporation of China’s digital currency.
