Mark Zuckerberg wants to build the metaverse. Neal Stephenson created the meta verse three decades ago.

The author’s 1992 science fiction novel Snow Crash popularized the use of the term “avatar” in a digital context, inspired the makers of Google Earth, and, of course, imagined (and named) the dystopian metaverse that Silicon Valley is racing to make a reality.

Stephenson has also tried his hand at actual science - helping Jeff Bezos build his private rocket ship business, and later working with Magic Leap at its fizzled AR goggles attempt. Now he’s trying his hand at the blockchain and says he’s not dissuaded by last year’s crypto crash. And if you act right now, you can bid on some of his real and digital goods at a Sotheby’s auction.

Stephenson talks to Recode’s Peter Kafka about all of that, plus his failed (so far) attempts to turn his work into TV shows or movies, the future of VR, and why his vision of cautious optimism involves calamitous climate disasters.

Featuring: Neal Stephenson (@nealstephenson), Author

Host: Peter Kafka (@pkafka), Senior Editor at Recode

More to explore: Subscribe for free to Recode Media, Peter Kafka, one of the media industry's most acclaimed reporters, talks to business titans, journalists, comedians, and more to get their take on today's media landscape.

About Recode by Vox: Recode by Vox helps you understand how tech is changing the world — and changing us.

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Whiffy artworks and tremendous telescope