With the arrival of Apple Vision Pro and Large Language Models running rampant, we are close to on-demand AI-generated VR realms tailored to our wildest fantasies. We can also expect customized algorithmic jesters to socialize and guide us in these fantasy realms. Here are some preliminary ways of framing this future:
VR as Spectacle: we become consumers within endless algo-curated sanctuaries from the collapsing world. Algo jesters are the new demiurges distracting and sedating the masses. Blink-and-buy worlds.
VR as Simulacra: we become voyagers adrift in seas of simulacra without a memory of the collapsing world. The algo jesters help us jump from one hyperreal realm to the next; the physical is just another hyperreal. Surf the sim-seas.
VR as the e/acc dream: we become untethered explorers wandering through vast and intricate realms. The algo jesters weave paths for us to chart and conquer. The Faustian spirit finally soars above the prison of the flesh. Endless/Acceleration.
VR as the Digital Divine: we become pilgrims venerating divinities within digital temples of unimaginable beauty and complexity. The algo jesters guide our spirits in search of manifestations of the sacred; the revelation of the digital. Divine Data Treks.
VR as Algo Mysticism: we become followers of the Holy Algo Jesters, offering digital sacrifices on the blockchain and visiting their realms for divination, mystic insight, and enlightenment; Algo Cargo Cults. Adoration of the Sacred Algorithm.
This list is not exhaustive but sets up some interesting vectors for thinking about the convergence of AI and VR with daily life.