Publications: Juan Londoño

Teens are some of the enthusiastic early adopters of augmented and virtual reality devices and the metaverse. Their relative lack of maturity and naivete makes them more susceptible to safety threats than adults. Yet, current policy proposals are unlikely to make AR/VR safer and would make online experiences worse overall for both teens and adults.

Facial recognition has increased public safety, convenience for consumers and security for businesses.

Planning and developing digital twins is a time-consuming process. While the U.S. government is only beginning to notice the potential benefits of using this tech, other countries have comprehensive adoption plans, with some of them already deploying tangible results.

Regulators should view the response to Unity's engine monetization changes as a cautionary tale: Today’s market leaders are still responsive to market forces, and if they ignore their customers’ demands, they may not hold the same position in the future.

Former FCC Commissioner Tom Wheeler recently called for proactively regulating the metaverse. But the regulatory interventions he proposed would do more harm than good.

Introducing immersive technologies into classrooms has the potential to make the U.S. education system more effective. But before these technologies are deployed in schools, the federal government should increase R&D investments in key areas that need further research.

The EU's strategy for Web 4.0 and virtual worlds has a laudable goal of fostering a supportive business environment to position the region as a hub for technological innovation. However, this objective is largely incompatible with the EU’s current regulations for Internet services.

Concerns over privacy and technical, logistical, and regulatory barriers to adoption as well as the lack of updated standards for immersive driving tools could hinder the economic potential of immersive technologies and introduce new safety risks. Policymakers should address these issues to ensure the projected benefits of immersive tech materialize.

The recent slate of changes in Horizon Worlds' safety practices and standards is a great example of how metaverse platforms are constantly evolving to adapt to users’ needs and demands. Policymakers should wait before intervening in a nascent industry like the metaverse.

Today’s legal landscape for publicity rights is fractured, but policymakers have the opportunity to shape the framework for the metaverse in a way that appropriately balances users’ and rightsholders’ interests.