Meta plans to cut investment in its Metaverse team and redirect funds to its VR glasses business.
TL;DR
Meta is planning layoffs in its Metaverse team, affecting 10-30% of employees, to redirect funds to its AR glasses business, which has exceeded sales targets.
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According to a report by Odaily Odaily, citing The New York Times, three employees familiar with the matter said that Meta Platforms (META.O) is considering layoffs in a branch of its Reality Labs division that works on the "metaverse" business, potentially starting as early as next month, affecting 10% to 30% of the team's employees. This team is primarily responsible for VR headsets and VR-based social networks. Reality Labs comprises the Metaverse and Wearables divisions. Sources indicate that management expects to redirect the savings from the layoffs to an AR glasses project. Meta launched AR glasses in 2021 in partnership with Ray-Ban, and sales have exceeded the company's internal targets. The sources say that Meta is reassessing metaverse investments, and within the metaverse division, executives are considering significant cuts to VR-related positions.