It’s Friday morning just before 10 AM, and I’m packed in a queuing area with over a thousand fans, all eagerly awaiting the rope drop, and the start of day one of the conference. To my left is a teenager dressed as a leafy sprite complete with vines growing out of her head. To my right is Batman. This is PAX (the Penny Arcade Expo), one of the largest gaming conventions in the world, and I’m here to see the future—the future of work.

While most bosses would frown on playing Halo at the office, it’s video games that are driving much of the innovation in video, virtual reality, and collaboration technologies today—something that has important implications for how we work, especially with far-flung colleagues. .

Each new generation of game requires more processing power, faster video rendering, and more memory than the generation before. The Borg and Area 51 gaming systems come equipped with a liquid cooling function, a hybrid of solid-state and spinning disk drives, and RAM in the triple digits. Dedicated gaming platforms such as Microsoft’s Xbox and Sony’s PlayStation have been ramping up their specs year after year to keep pace with the voracious demands of game designers. These advances, in turn, drive down the cost of lower powered systems, and spur innovation in laptop and desktop solutions, as well as mobile devices.

One of the most recent developments is 4K, or Ultra High Definition. This advanced resolution requires incredible video processing power, but also allows for the creation of immersive, lifelike renderings of gaming environments. The auto industry was among the first to see the promise of technologies like Computer Assisted Design (CAD) and Computer Assisted Manufacturing (CAM). They use simulators programmed with real-world physics and advanced imaging pioneered in the gaming world to test how new car designs respond to different driving scenarios. Designs are refined in the virtual world before automakers spend a cent building actual cars. With the level of detail made possible by these tools, it’s easy to imagine other companies conceiving and testing physical products in this way.

And that’s just the beginning of what games have to offer business. Technologies like virtual reality, multi-user environments, and real-time gameplay are immersing gamers in war zones or distant planets today, but will be used by organizations to build a more collaborative workforce tomorrow.

Consider the implications just for remote workers. A 2012 survey by Siemens Enterprise Communications found high levels of frustration, disconnection, and distraction among members of virtual teams. Virtual reality promises a solution. That’s one reason why Goldman Sachs has predicted that by 2025, the virtual and augmented reality market will grow to $80 billion or about the size of today’s PC market.

Imagine joining a meeting that exists in virtual space – a conference room rendered in 3-D, complete with chairs, a table, a whiteboard, and coffee. As your colleagues join, you see their avatars enter the room and sit around the table. The meeting is an immersive simulation of an in-person meeting, created with the help of motion sensors that track physical movement or gloves equipped to capture hand movements and body language. Audio is a live feed from each participant. In this scenario, it’s difficult for team members to slip off to do their laundry, or multitask on other projects, because their attention is fully committed to the virtual environment of the meeting.

People playing immersive 3-D games are already using this technology. The gear is expensive (the Oculus Rift Headset rings in at $599, Sony’s PlayStation VR headset is $400, and the HTC Vive is $800), but as with any new technology, prices will drop over time. Virtual meeting vendors are now adding support for these tools to their product roadmaps. So while you’re probably not sitting in a virtual conference room today, you may be soon.

Gaming is leading the way in another important area of technology: user engagement. Extending gameplay is a top priority among game designers. One of the ways they hold people’s interest is by fostering personal connection. Many of today’s most popular games, from golf simulators to The Sims, allow you to customize an avatar. This creates an emotional connection between the player and the game. QVIT, an online clothing store, allows shoppers to create personal avatars to try on outfits. They are betting that by seeing your virtual self in the clothes, you’re more likely to buy.

Some of the other tactics employed to keep you playing come straight from behavioral psychology. In fact, many game companies hire psychologists to devise engagement strategies. Think about the last game you played. Early levels are pretty easy, with wins and rewards, whether in the form of upgraded weapons or in-game virtual money. But the longer you play, the harder it is to get to the next level. This is called a reward interval or ratio. If the interval is too long, the player gets frustrated and quits. If it’s too short, the player feels like the game is too easy and not worth their time. Optimization of reward intervals comes from the work of B.F. Skinner, and other behavioral scientists.

While this may be worrisome for parents whose children can’t stop playing video games, it’s been welcomed as a tool to engage learners. In 2014, Microsoft made headlines when it acquired Minecraft – one of the most popular gaming platforms on the market. In early 2016, they announced the release of Minecraft Education Edition, placing a huge bet that gaming is the future of learning. Cisco Systems has implemented a game-based learning program to help employees and contractors improve their social media skills. And Deloitte integrated gamification into their Online Leadership Academy in 2016. Within three months, the number of users returning to the site on a daily basis increased 46.6%. As companies see the benefits of increased engagement through games, the number and variety of learning applications will continue to grow.

These are just a few of the technological advances coming out of the gaming industry. But one thing is clear: games are setting the pace. Are you paying attention?