Meta Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg is expected to meaningfully cut resources for building the so-called metaverse, an effort that he once framed as the future of the company and the reason for changing its name from Facebook.
Executives are considering potential budget cuts as high as 30% for the metaverse group next year, which includes the virtual worlds product Meta Horizon Worlds and its Quest virtual reality unit, according to people familiar with the talks, who asked not to be named while discussing private company plans. Cuts that high would most likely include layoffs as early as January, according to the people, though a final decision has not yet been made.
Meta confirmed a reduction in resources for the metaverse, and said savings are expected to funnel toward other futuristic projects within Meta’s Reality Labs division, including AI glasses and other wearables. “Within our overall Reality Labs portfolio we are shifting some of our investment from Metaverse toward AI glasses and wearables given the momentum there. We aren’t planning any broader changes than that,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
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