From NFTs to the Metaverse: 5 Popular Tech Terms for Investors

1. & 2. Blockchain powers the cryptocurrency craze

Cryptocurrencies have made the leap from fringe investment to mainstream appeal. There's been an explosion of available options in the market, but the most widely adopted choices are bitcoin and ethereum.

Bitcoin offers investors a new method to grow their capital through a decentralized system. Bitcoin, like other cryptocurrencies, isn’t kept physically, but holders can watch their stakes through a public ledger.

Bitcoin has gone through an outrageous price history since its launch, and it has caught the attention of the entire investment market in the process. The coin can now even be accessed via exchange-traded funds, which have dominated market talk recently as investment options proliferate.

That said, it's worth noting that the current cryptocurrency landscape has created a heavy amount of volatility; experts say investors will have to get used to it if they want to enter the market.

Market participants also need to be wary of scams — one report shows that in 2021 there was a mammoth US$14 billion worth of crypto scams in the market.

3. NFTs lead a new path to art and engagement

Another trend that's launched a new investment model involves the possibilities behind unique art technology.

Non-fungible tokens, commonly known as NFTs, point to a new age of unique digital assets. NFTs have caught on as a buzzword as more people develop an appreciation for the uses for blockchain technology.

Effectively an NFT is a one-of-a kind item for collectors or investors to purchase. NFTs are tied to the ethereum blockchain, where their information is backed and where users can access them.

While NFTs encompass a wide range of assets, images and drawings have become the most popular.

NFTs have also been tied to the gaming market as gaming companies have expressed interest in offering unique in-game assets. However, this idea has not been entirely well received by players and game developers, and as a result several NFT projects in gaming have been altered or canceled.

The impact of NFTs in gaming remains to be seen, but one thing is for sure: NFTs are a potentially engaging opportunity for those looking for new art investment solutions.

4. Metaverse attracts the eyes of tech's biggest leaders

The metaverse is a concept that's tricky to pin down, but from an investor standpoint it essentially involves betting on a digital landscape inhabited by other users.

The metaverse gained an enormous amount of interest when social media company Facebook changed its name to Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:FB).

The Facebook platform continues to operate normally, but the company's new Meta branding represents the bet its leadership team wants to pursue: a digital world that users can easily access and spend quality time in.

The initial steps to develop this digital world have come from branded virtual meeting spaces.

The digital landscape concept has also created a new investment proposal: metaverse real estate. Investors excited by this space have poured millions into its future, buying parcels of "land" in the metaverse.

While there is a long way to go in terms of building the metaverse, there is already proof that people will spend significant amounts of time and money in digital spaces with friends or strangers — the video game market has offered plenty of these environments for years in the form of massively multiplayer online games.

5. Push for Web3 leads mindset for new trend

The last new opportunity on this list is Web3, which refers to a new version of the internet, one that many supporters are clamoring for within the tech industry. Web3 supposes an internet landscape that doesn’t rely on current platforms or companies.

The existing market is largely dominated by leading tech companies, but Web3 would not use services from players like Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG), Meta Platforms and Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN).

“With Web3, we will be able to build and govern our own decentralized networks on the internet,” Shaun Heng, vice president and chief of staff at CoinMarketCap, told GOBankingRates. “This allows for the possibility of autonomous, self-governed networks that will be completely democratized, without leaders.”

Currently, Web3 is one of the murkiest concepts among all these technology trends, but it's an idea that is attracting a healthy level of attention and among tech-savvy people.

According to a report from Business Insider, tech recruiters are seeing massive demand for roles within the cryptocurrency space, as well as other decentralized tech ventures such as Web3.

“That's largely because people want to work on what is most exciting in technology, recruiters said. Right now, that's crypto and Web3,” the report indicates.

Investor takeaway

All of these exciting new investment possibilities share one similarity: they represent opportunity.

It will be vital for investors who want to join in to build their understanding of key terms and ideas so they can stay ahead of the curve and potentially profit.