What the numbers say: Reality Labs, a division of Meta encompassing augmented and virtual reality hardware, software, and content, recorded operating losses of an eye-watering ~$13.7B in 2022, marking a 34% rise in losses from the previous year, according to Meta's Annual Report for the fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2022. In 2019, the company reported a ~$4.5B operating loss. Relevance: Meta Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg has said he views the metaverse as the next frontier for computing technology. The Reality Labs division generated $2.1B in revenue in 2022, a 5% decrease from the previous year's $2.21B. However, in Q1 2023, it incurred a $3.99B operating loss, following a $13.72B loss in the previous year. Other competitors like Microsoft have also struggled to get consumers to buy into VR programs. Impact: Meta reduced its user base targets for "Horizon Worlds" from 560,000 to 280,000 in late 2021. Despite aiming for 300,000 active users in February 2022, the actual number by the end of the year was below 200,000. Meta's "Horizon Worlds" VR app had just over 200,000 users as of February before the company decided to open it up to teenagers as young as 13. |
