Bloomberg reports, citing anonymous sources, that Meta may be planning significant reductions to its Metaverse division.
The report further stated that company executives are contemplating slashing the virtual reality platform’s budget by up to 30%, which would also involve layoffs.
Should Meta move forward with such a proposal, it would indicate a broader lack of enthusiasm for products like Meta’s social virtual reality platform Horizon Worlds, as well as its virtual reality hardware — across both the industry and consumer base.
Since Meta’s rebranding in 2021, investors have been skeptical of the company’s extensive resource allocation to Metaverse projects, which continue to incur billions of dollars in losses each quarter. While its efforts in AI and smart glasses have seen greater success, investors remain concerned that its investment plans are too costly.
Nevertheless, Meta’s shares increased following this report.
Meta has not yet provided an immediate response to a request for comment.