Seoul Goes Virtual: South Korea Launches First City-Backed Public Metaverse Platform: “Metaverse Seoul”

South Korea has launched a virtual replica of its capital city, Seoul, in the metaverse, making it the first city-backed public metaverse platform in the broader crypto world. The project, called “Metaverse Seoul,” was first announced in February 2022 and has been allocated more than $200 million in funding to help develop the technology.

The Metaverse Seoul project is divided into three stages, with the first stage focusing on improving the efficiency of public administration services such as citizenship, tax counseling, and youth mentoring. The second stage will offer services such as real estate counseling and connecting foreign investors with local industries. The final stage will focus on integrating virtual and augmented reality technology to help manage the city’s infrastructure.

Wider Adoption Trend 

This move by South Korea is part of a growing trend of nations adopting and integrating blockchain functionality to improve their economies. In August 2022, Norway announced that it was adopting the metaverse to launch a tax office in the Decentraland metaverse game. In October 2022, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) confirmed that it was integrating blockchain functionality to launch a metaverse city to boost tourism. In addition, Japan has also adopted non-fungible tokens to reward local government officials for various initiatives they undertake to improve the lives of the public in their respective regions.

The launch of Metaverse Seoul reflects South Korea’s continued commitment to the adoption and integration of blockchain technology in the Asian region. The project is expected to be completed in 2026 and will bring about significant improvements in the efficiency of public administration services, as well as providing new opportunities for foreign investment and tourism. It will be interesting to see how this initiative will evolve over the next few years and how it will influence the development of other metaverse projects around the world.