OHNY: Connecting Cities to the Metaverse

On the eve of the inaugural Metaverse & Cities Summit, my friends and partners at Open House New York hosted a curtain-raiser of sorts on Zoom. Featuring a trio of current- and former public officials from New York City and Washington D.C., the session dwelled on such fundamental questions as what is the metaverse good for? And what should cities do with it? To answer those questions, watch the video above — or at least read the description below:

The Metaverse is no longer solely the realm of the tech sector. Cities across the country are busy exploring how virtual worlds and augmented landscapes offer opportunities to enhance public life, deliver services, and engage residents. Join Open House New York, the Jacobs Urban Tech Hub at Cornell Tech, and the NYU School of Professional Studies Metaverse Collaborative for a dynamic panel discussion spotlighting how new technologies are being leveraged to reshape the ways we interact with the built environment. Moderated by Jacobs Urban Tech Fellow Greg Lindsay, this conversation features Ernest Chrappah, Acting Director of the Washington DC Department of Buildings, David Gilford, Head of Policy & Strategic Partnerships at Sidewalk Infrastructure Partners, and Daria Siegel, Vice President of Special Initiatives at NYC Economic Development Corporation discussing how cities are incorporating new virtual technologies to enhance public services, and how they can work with the private sector to improve them.