7 things you could buy with the $30B Meta has lost to VR and AR research
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For the past year and a half, Meta has lost a total of over $30 billion trying to find a way to bring virtual reality and augmented reality to your home.
That total comes from the last set of operating losses for Reality Labs, Meta’s division for researching AR and VR. It lost a total of $10 billion in 2021 and $13.7 billion in 2022. Add in the $4.3 billion it lost in the previous quarter and the $3.99 billion it just lost this year and you get that very, very big number.
The losses are getting smaller, which suggests Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s “year of efficiency” (which includedlaying off 21,000 employees) might’ve stemmed the bleeding.
Despite the tech world’s waning interest in “the metaverse,” especially as AI continues to flood the public consciousness, Meta continues to hold on tight to Reality Labs. Last year, it increased the price of itsQuest 2 VR headset, citing increased production costs and a desire to invest in “groundbreaking research and new product development that pushes the VR industry to new heights.” It’s all part ofa 10-year plan, according to Zuckerberg.
Not all of us have 10 years to wait for this dream to become reality, and $30 billion is a lot of money. Here are some things you could do with that right now:
Or you could continue down Meta’s path and search for ways to encourage people to embrace life in the metaverse, VR gaming, and going out with AR glasses on. Outside of the Quest, Meta hasn’t had anything particularly impressive to show for it, but clearly $30 billion is a drop in the bucket for what it believes is the future.
Next month, Meta will hold aVR gaming showwhere it will show “over 40 minutes of content,” for upcoming games, and maybe a peek at itsnext-gen Quest headset.
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Tyler has covered videogames and PC hardware for 15 years. He regularly spends time playing and reporting on games like Diablo 4, Elden Ring, Overwatch 2, and Final Fantasy 14. While his speciality is in action RPGs and MMOs, he’s driven to cover all sorts of games whether they’re broken, beautiful, or bizarre.
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