Singapore’s TechLaw.Fest returns this month for its fifth annual event, this year in a hybrid setting following two years of being held online.

Global Legal Post is a media sponsor for the three-day legal and tech conference, which is run by the Singapore Academy of Law (SAL) and starts on 20 July. The first day will take place at the iconic Marina Bay Sands hotel for a virtual reality metaverse exhibition, followed by a two-day online conference to discuss the implications of the metaverse and web 3.0 trends such as blockchain and 5G technology on the legal industry.

Guest speakers include Singapore’s culture minister Edwin Tong, who will deliver the keynote speech. Other speakers include virtual world Somnium Space’s CEO Arthur Sychov and Madaline Zannes, one of the first lawyers to set up a law office in the metaverse. They will be joined by Alethea AI’s CEO Arif Khan. The conference will bring together more than 2,000 legal, tech and government leaders.

Rama Tiwari, chief executive of SAL, said: “The next iteration of the internet coupled with next generation interfaces using augmented and virtual reality will bring benefits and challenges. All new technologies give rise to novel legal issues. TechLaw.Fest offers a timely forum to experience, explore, discuss and exchange ideas on how to either mitigate risks or resolve these novel legal issues.”

According to a Gartner study, a quarter of people will spend at least one hour a day in the metaverse by 2026 for activities such as work, shopping, education or social and entertainment purposes. The global metaverse economy could grow to $13tr by 2030, with more than five billion users, according to a Citibank forecast.

Bill Deckelman, executive director and general counsel of DXC Technology – TechLaw.Fest’s digital transformation partner – said: “The metaverse is an exciting evolution. The opportunities for collaboration and even improving a company’s sustainability posture with reduced travel and in-person meetings are immense. But so are the potential risks. The need for embedded security protections, enhanced identity and privacy measures need to be top of mind so that organisations can enter this new virtual world securely and safely.”

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