🧑‍💻 Metaverse is falling apart

PLUS a remote worker was fired for using a mouse-jiggler, Selina's Residency program allows you to travel the world, and the coolest keyboard we've ever seen

Author

Mitko Karshovski
April 10, 2023

Hey Insiders, hope you had an awesome weekend! Welcome back to another edition of Remote Insider, your favorite destination for remote work news and information.

Today’s email is a 3min 30sec read:

  • 👾 Why the metaverse is falling apart

  • 🔥 A remote worker was fired for using a mouse-jiggler

  • 🏨 Selina’s Residency program allows you to travel the world

  • ➕ The coolest keyboard we’ve ever seen

With AI & ChatGPT on all over the news, it feels like everyone has forgotten about the metaverse, and as it turns out, it’s true…

📝 INSIDER ORIGINAL

The Metaverse is Falling Apart

Last year it seemed that all anyone could talk about was the metaverse.

Dozens of brands from Adidas to Disney, Microsoft, Tommy Hilfiger, Nike, and even Wendy’s invested in buying digital real estate in order to stay on the cutting edge.

Now the future isn’t so certain…

Recently, both Disney and Microsoft, two of Meta’s most promising partners in the space, pulled out of their metaverse investments, and I don’t blame them...

A recent report by The Block revealed the absolutely brutal numbers - only 20 to 30 people are actively trading property inside of Decentraland on a weekly basis which amounts to a measly $50,000.

This is a huge hit to one of the darlings of the metaverse space which was seeing trading volumes in the millions in 2021 and 2022.

Similarly, data aggregator DappRadar found that Decentraland only had 38 “active users” over a 24-hour period 🤯 

As recently as October of 2022, Decentraland was valued at over $1 billion, today it wouldn’t surprise many experts if it went bankrupt.

So why is this happening?

🚨 WORD ON THE WEB

🐭 A remote worker was fired from his job for using a “mouse-jiggler” in order to appear active at work

  • The anonymous person wrote on r/overemployed that he was using an app to keep his computer active, which the IT department discovered

  • His company put him on a PIP (Performance Improvement Plan) which is usually the last step before being fired, and then officially terminated him

  • In addition to the mouse-jiggler software, the employee had missed multiple standup calls and other meetings due to being overemployed

  • The story sparked a heated debate online about whether or not being overemployed is ethical.

How do you feel about this? Should someone be fired if it's discovered they have multiple jobs?

Login or Subscribe to participate in polls.

🏨 Selina’s Film & Photo Residency program allows you to see the world and work as a full-time creator

  • If you didn’t know for the last year Selina has been offering a program for videographers & photographers allowing them to travel the world for very cheap.

  • As part of the program, you receive food and lodging at Selina locations in exchange for creating content for the brand

  • The program can last 7, 10, or 14 days but you can apply as many times as you want

  • You will select a location with Selina depending on their needs. Travel between the locations is not covered.

🤕 People are getting laid off while WFH, even if they go into the office

  • Last week McDonald’s asked corporate employees who normally work at least 3 days a week from the office to work from home, then laid them off.

  • Some people preferred this, saying that it happened in an environment they felt comfortable in, didn’t have to publicly leave the office after getting fired, and at least they didn’t have to waste time coming into the office

  • Others disagreed, saying that it would have seemed more sincere in person and that it would have given them a chance to say goodbye to coworkers.

  • This is raising questions about how layoffs should be done in the future, especially at hybrid companies.

🎧 Want to learn more about Overemployment? Listen to the That Remote Life podcast episode with the founder of the Reddit community

📆 UPCOMING EVENTS:

April 25-26: Running Remote [📍 Lisbon, Portugal] - Largest remote work conference in the world for enterprises and SMEs

May 24-28: Vivel [📍 Multiple Locations, Turkey] - networking meets music at this one-of-a-kind conference for location-independent professionals

June 16-19: Camp Indie [📍 Kent, Connecticut] - adult summer camp & conference for digital nomads & those living an unconventional life

June 25-July 2: Bansko Nomad Fest [📍 Bansko, Bulgaria] - for digital nomads, freelancers, and founders in the mountains of Bulgaria

💾 TECH

Is This The Greatest Keyboard Of All Time?

The Flux Keyboard just launched on Kickstarter and is already fully funded. It’s a magnetic resistance keyboard laid on top of a full HD display and a modular top row that allows you to customize your keyboard for a fully personalized experience.

⭐️ WFA FULL-TIME JOBS:

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That's it from us this week, hope you have an amazing day!