Why DeFi, GameFi and SocialFi are horizontals in the Metaverse

The Metaverse is expected to be the next avatar of the internet. As the internet is now, the Metaverse will have various virtual economic models powered by Web3. These models can have their roots in financial services, gaming or social media. Yet, there will be constant cross-overs and interactions across these models as they coexist in the Metaverse.

In the world of Web3, we often perceive decentralized finance (DeFi), GameFi and SocialFi as separate verticals or sectors. The inception of these three subclusters of Web3 happened at different times over the last few years. But as the space evolves and the Metaverse concept of matures, we are more likely to see them integrate into a Metaverse experience as horizontals.

All of these concepts are still in their nascent stages and use crypto to support their economic models. Most of the current implementations within DeFi, GameFi and SocialFi are standalone decentralized applications (DApps). However, that is set to change with the Metaverse becoming a part of the household.

Let us understand why it is critical to differentiate the capabilities of verticals versus horizontals. When we look at a GameFi application within a metaverse, we see that it is a dedicated gaming experience that draws users into the Metaverse. They play the game and leave the platform fulfilled.

The same can be the case for DeFi and SocialFi apps as verticals. For users who come to the platform to perform DeFi transactions or want to interact with their friends in Twitter or Instagram-like experiences, the apps are there as verticals. They stand out as an experience.

But the Metaverse is not just a collection of applications. It is more a bundle of conscious and unconscious user experiences within a scalable economic model. The conscious experiences can be categorized as verticals and the unconscious experiences as horizontals.