LONDON: The World Economic Forum in collaboration with Microsoft and Accenture on Tuesday announced the launch of the Global Collaboration Village, a metaverse project to help tackle some of the world’s most pressing challenges.

The virtual village will “bolster more diverse global collaboration and large-scale action,” the WEF believes.

“We are creating the first public purpose-oriented application of the metaverse technology, building a true global village in the virtual space,” said Klaus Schwab, WEF founder and executive chairman. 

The village, supported by both private and public partners, will “use the frontier capabilities of the metaverse to find solutions for addressing the big issues of our time in a more open, inclusive and sustained way,” he said.

More than 80 organizations and founding partners are backing the project, which seeks to bridge the physical and digital worlds, and establish new types of work collaboration.

Companies and public institutions, including IBM and Meta, as well as the Saudi government and UN, will meet in the first-ever interactive, multilateral session in the metaverse.

“We believe the metaverse has the potential to fundamentally change the way we communicate and collaborate, overcoming limitations of the physical world to deliver enhanced connections for everyone,” said Brad Smith, vice-chair and president of Microsoft.

The village is “a prime example of how we can use metaverse technology to bring people and communities together in new ways,” he said.

It will feature a town hall, which serves as the forum’s “virtual congress center,” and several virtual collaboration spaces.

Stakeholder campuses will allow partners to shape their presence and the village’s development.

Based on the forum’s guiding principles, the project hopes to further bolster learning, collaboration and partnership, and strengthen and re-energize international cooperation.