I climbed into the front seat of the air taxi, buckled the seat belt and braced as the aircraft lifted off. The futuristic cityscape of Busan, South Korea, dropped away, and a digital avatar popped up on the windscreen with a message.

I couldnB次元官网网址檛 answer as a wave of motion sickness hit me. The virtual reality goggles combined with motion-simulating seats pitching back and forth and side to side made it feel like I was actually hovering and maneuvering in the air. They also made me so nauseous I had to close my eyes for the rest of the three-minute journey.

B次元官网网址� sort of.

South Korean company SK TelecomB次元官网网址檚 air taxi mockup was one of the , or Mobile World Congress, the . Tech companies and wireless carriers at displayed advancements to connect people and businesses online, increasingly in new virtual reality worlds dubbed the metaverse.

Visitor Mark Varahona also felt woozy after trying the flight experience but is still considering buying a virtual reality headset, the hardware needed to enter any immersive digital universe.

B次元官网网址淚 was thinking to buy it before coming here. And maybe now I will buy them,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淭hey look quite nice.B次元官网网址�

The metaverse exploded in popularity after Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg in late 2021 pronounced it the next big thing for the internet, and socking tens of billions into the idea.

He portrayed it as 3D community where people can meet, work and play B次元官网网址� doing everything from trying on digital clothes, holding a virtual meeting or taking a trip online.

But have been creeping in as the initial hype wears off. Sales of virtual reality headsets in the U.S. slipped 2% by December from the previous year, according to NPD Research. Reality Labs, which makes Meta Quest headsets, in 2022.

Meta has said it to work on the metaverse. When asked for an update, the company said, B次元官网网址淥ur expansion in Europe was always a long-term one planned over a number of years. We remain committed to Europe.B次元官网网址�

The B次元官网网址渕etaverse has not gone away,B次元官网网址� said Ben Wood, principal analyst at CCS Insight. B次元官网网址淏ut I think thereB次元官网网址檚 a lot more skepticism about what role itB次元官网网址檚 going to play, particularly in the consumer domain beyond the obvious areas of things like gaming.B次元官网网址�

The definition of the metaverse has been hard to pin down, . It is not the same as virtual reality and its cousin, augmented reality, said Tuong Nguyen, a Gartner analyst specializing in emerging technologies.

B次元官网网址淪o AR and VR very closely related to the metaverse in the same way that computers are related to the Internet,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淭hink of it instead as evolution of the Internet, which changes the way that we interact with the world.B次元官网网址�

So how should SK TelecomB次元官网网址檚 flight simulator be defined?

B次元官网网址淭echnically, itB次元官网网址檚 not metaverse, but kind of metaverse,B次元官网网址� said Ken Wohn, a company manager.

South KoreaB次元官网网址檚 biggest telecom provider teamed up last year with CaliforniaB次元官网网址檚 Joby Aviation to develop an electric air taxi service to the country.

One day the air taxis might operate autonomously, using high-speed 5G wireless connections, Wohn said.

It was a different experience at French wireless company OrangeB次元官网网址檚 , where users were transported to a futuristic neon-hued technoscape with lightning bolts, giant robots and a falcon carrying a green orb in its talons.

A dancing figure appeared, representing the movements of a real-life dancer wearing motion-capture gear. It was a dazzling display, though what consumer purpose it had was not immediately clear.

Miguel Angel Almonacid, OrangeB次元官网网址檚 network strategy director for Spain, said it demonstrates how will eliminate lag for metaverse users watching something happening far away.

The metaverse might be more suited to practical purposes in the workplace, analysts said.

B次元官网网址淭hatB次元官网网址檚 where weB次元官网网址檒l see traction first because the barriers arenB次元官网网址檛 as high,B次元官网网址� said GartnerB次元官网网址檚 Nguyen. For example, a worker could use augmented reality glasses to pull up diagnostics or an instruction manual.

Spanish startup La Frontera uses the metaverse to provide virtual meetings with B次元官网网址渞ealistic avatars,B次元官网网址� Marta Ortiz de Lucas-Baquero, a business development executive, said as she guided me through the companyB次元官网网址檚 metaverse.

We arrived first on a beach, with boulders, palm trees and a light blue sea. Her avatar appeared, a head and shoulders with disembodied hands hovering in front of her chest. We entered a nearby conference room with a boardroom table, where I used handheld controllers to pick up 3D objects like a toy ray gun and a bottle of Champagne.

Other metaverse applications include training for risky, repetitive or highly detailed procedures, like surgery.

The beach disappeared, replaced by an overturned tanker truck on fire. A fire extinguisher hung in midair. Ortiz de Lucas-Baquero told me to grab it with my virtual hand and spray it at the flames, which started to die down.

The virtual world also could be useful for showcasing products too big to move easily, like private jets. She said La Frontera has digitally catalogued NetJetsB次元官网网址� fleet so customers can inspect different models online.

Or they could be too small for humans.

The scene changed to a sci-fi setting, with crimson walls rising up around us, representing the inside of a blood vessel. Reddish-brown doughnut-shaped blood cells floated past, followed by spiky orbs. The blood vesselB次元官网网址檚 wall opened up, exposing pulsing white streaks on a blue background, depicting neurons in a brain.

La Frontera works with pharmaceutical companies to B次元官网网址渟how how a drug works in the body at a cellular level,B次元官网网址� Ortiz de Lucas-Baquero said. In this case, it was a medicine to treat multiple sclerosis, which attacks brain neurons.

B次元官网网址擪elvin Chan, The Associated Press