Virtual Natives

6From Apprentice to Expert

Something that is implicit in everything we've said so far, but haven't yet spelled out in so many words, is this: Virtual Natives are digital experts. Their lifelong digital immersion makes them the ones who know not only the ins and outs of specific media spaces, games, and other digital realms, but their experience often extends far beyond mere usage into areas such as hardware, connectivity specifications, and successful marketing and monetization strategies for creating and promoting their own brands. As expressed in a Forbes article, Virtual Natives “talk about their business ambitions with the same casual demeanor you'd expect in a high school lunchroom. To [VNs], this knowledge of digital entrepreneurship is practically inherent.”¹ VNs are the ones that parents turn to when they can't quite figure out how to get a new piece of home tech working, and the ones that companies turn to when they realize that they need an effective Web3 strategy. And why not? Virtual Natives have been inhabiting digital realities almost since birth.

This deep expertise with all facets of the digital landscape is a defining hallmark of Virtual Natives, and a point that we will consider with greater depth in Part Two. For now, though, we need to address the elephant in the room – are VNs paying a price for their significant digital knowledge, and, for some, is it too high?

Virtualization, Virtual Worlds, and Immersion

Virtualization is not only about immersive virtual ...