Meta chief technology officer Andrew "Boz" Bosworth said early in 2025 that the metaverse could be a "legendary misadventure" if the company's Reality Labs division didn't turn things around that year in a big way. Well, here we are in 2026, and it looks like the mission was not accomplished: Bloomberg says Meta is beginning layoffs of more than 1,000 Reality Labs employees and closing three development studios as it shifts attention from VR and the metaverse to its next big idea, AI wearables and phone features.
An internal memo viewed by Bloomberg said roughly 10% of the Reality Labs workforce will be let go in an effort to make the division "more sustainable." A Meta representative said the cuts represent part of a previously announced effort to shift investment "from metaverse toward wearables," adding, "We plan to reinvest the savings to support the growth of wearables this year."
