Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg says the metaverse is 'not the majority of what we're doing'
Zuckerberg said less than 20% of Meta's investments go toward its metaverse division, saying people can debate whether that's "too much for this bet."
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said his company's metaverse bet is 'not the majority of what we're doing,' as he faces growing backlash for the costly venture.
"About 80% of our investments – a little more – go towards the core business, what we call our family of apps, so that's Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp Messenger, and the ads business associated with that. Then a little less than 20% of our investment goes towards Reality Labs," Zuckerberg said Wednesday at the New York Times Dealbook conference.
"So still the vast majority of what we're doing is, and will continue to be, going towards social media for quite some time until the metaverse becomes a larger thing."
Since last year, when Zuckerberg announced a surprise rebrand from Facebook to Meta, the company has sunk a significant amount of money into metaverse technology, reporting nearly $20 billion in losses from its metaverse "Reality Labs" segment since the start of last year.
The losses keep piling up with no end in sight; some investors have expressed concern that Zuckerberg has lost focus on his company's core social media business in exchange for a long-shot project that may take years to reap financial rewards.
"You can debate whether 20% is too much for this bet, but it's not the majority of what we're doing," Zuckerberg said.
He broke down Reality Labs' spending, saying 40% goes toward VR investments, and about half goes toward building the longer-term project: "normal-looking glasses that can put holograms in the world."
Despite the resistance to his company's pivot, Zuckerberg sounded upbeat about his company's multi-billion-dollar investment in the metaverse.
"We're not going to be here in the 2030s communicating and using computing devices that are exactly the same as what we have today. If someone has to build that and invest in it and believe in it, there's a lot of new technology that needs to get invented to create that. So I'm still very optimistic about that," he said.
"About 80% of our investments – a little more – go towards the core business, what we call our family of apps, so that's Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp Messenger, and the ads business associated with that. Then a little less than 20% of our investment goes towards Reality Labs," Zuckerberg said Wednesday at the New York Times Dealbook conference.
"So still the vast majority of what we're doing is, and will continue to be, going towards social media for quite some time until the metaverse becomes a larger thing."
Since last year, when Zuckerberg announced a surprise rebrand from Facebook to Meta, the company has sunk a significant amount of money into metaverse technology, reporting nearly $20 billion in losses from its metaverse "Reality Labs" segment since the start of last year.
The losses keep piling up with no end in sight; some investors have expressed concern that Zuckerberg has lost focus on his company's core social media business in exchange for a long-shot project that may take years to reap financial rewards.
"You can debate whether 20% is too much for this bet, but it's not the majority of what we're doing," Zuckerberg said.
He broke down Reality Labs' spending, saying 40% goes toward VR investments, and about half goes toward building the longer-term project: "normal-looking glasses that can put holograms in the world."
Despite the resistance to his company's pivot, Zuckerberg sounded upbeat about his company's multi-billion-dollar investment in the metaverse.
"We're not going to be here in the 2030s communicating and using computing devices that are exactly the same as what we have today. If someone has to build that and invest in it and believe in it, there's a lot of new technology that needs to get invented to create that. So I'm still very optimistic about that," he said.
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
