Your answer is yes. It would be extremely effective, if used properly.
Let's compare it to chainmail. Since it has a similar principle.
Chainmail is a decently good defense depending on the thickness and diameter of the rings. (Thicker rings = better, and smaller diameter = better). The strength of chainmail relies on preventing the blade from passing through the material, therefore stopping the cut. Good chainmail has been known to stop arrows. The type of piercing it is weak to, is bodkin arrows or thin knives that fit between the links. (which is why mail with smaller links is better).
Unlike how <PERSON> says it would be vulnerable to a thrust, it is not. Because a thrust to penetrate, it must penetrate. He mentioned that the metal links would fold around the blade and basically still cut you. This is simply not true. This is because the mail is not loose. It is going to be tight so then it wouldn't have enough give to fold around a blade like that. (and even if it did, it wouldn't actually cut you, it might break your ribs, but not actually cut you)
Now it is true, that mail would be weak to bludgeoning. This is because one layer of material is not going to cushion the blow.
Now let's see how your metal silk compares to this
It would have the advantage over chainmail in that it would be finer and therefore not have a problem with bodkin arrows and thin knives. 347
(or polearms with those thin spikes)
But it would have the disadvantage of having thinner metal fibers, and those would be able to break more easily than chain links. And it would be useless against bludgeoning.
But never fear. The purpose of chainmail is not to be used on its own. It is worn historically as either underneath plate or on top of gambeson.
<PERSON>, this is how it would be used. As either a protective layer on top of gambeson or literally make gambeson out of this material.
In either situation, you wouldn't just use 1 layer. You would use multiple layers stacked on one another. And if you made a metal silk gambeson, then you would stack anywhere from 20-100 layers of metal silk depending on how good you wanted it to be. And the thicker it gets, the better it becomes for certain. What happens is as it gets thicker, a. the less you have to worry about the thickness of the metal fibers, and b. the more it will cushion against bludgeoning attacks.
I would still recommend layering this in with, or on top of gambeson as normal cloth makes a more effective cushion.
Another great way you could use this is brigandine. Brigandine is a layer of canvas or leather on top of metal plates with another canvass/leather layer underneath. Just swap out the canvass/leather with metal silk, and you have another alternative.
But, this is all assuming the metal that would be used is steel. You said, "any metal" including fantastical metals. If you used a special metal, you could remove any, or all of the disadvantages of this material, and have the perfect armor. 523