Mark Zuckerberg Metaverse Obsession Drives Some Employees Crazy
- The Facebook founder is interested in little but the “metaverse”, current and former employees say.
- Last year, Zuckerberg focused on building what he sees as the future of the internet.
- “There’s still no cohesive strategy,” one employee said.
Mark Zuckerberg is so engrossed in building the metaverse that it’s becoming a point of frustration for people who work for him, according to several current and former Facebook employees.
It’s “the only thing Mark wants to talk about”, according to a former director-level employee who recently left.
The company is “sending one hell of a message” about the new direction, “creating metaverse-specific teams,” including one that will reach out to all groups in the company and be tasked with letting people know “there is a metaverse playbook,” this person told Insider a story exploring his big strategic pivot and current business struggles.
Some staff are still confused, however. “It’s basically fomenting disorganization and anxiety,” said a current employee. “People don’t seem to really know what to deliver or what to work on because there’s still no coherent strategy.”
A spokesperson said the company was “going through a defining period for the business and we are going full throttle.”
“A lot of people are excited, but they have a lot of questions at the same time,” the spokesperson added.
Facebook has renamed itself Meta. Last year, it lost $10 billion on its Reality Labs segment, which handles metaverse projects. He intends to spend that much this year as well, and possibly for many years to come. Zuckerberg said the Metaverse is a long-term project that won’t be fully developed for a decade or more.
So far, there’s not much to show for so much money spent, according to another employee who recently quit. “There’s still not much to touch or look at, let alone use,” the person said, “for all his metaverse proclamations.”
Are you a current or former Meta employee? Do you have any advice?
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