Meta Shares Jump After Zuckerberg Prepares Deep Cuts To Metaverse Following Epic Flop
Meta shares jumped the most in months after a Bloomberg report said Mark Zuckerberg is preparing deep cuts to the company's metaverse ambitions. The metaverse, once pitched by Zuckerberg as the "next chapter of the internet," has been nothing more than a colossal failure.
According to Bloomberg, Meta executives have discussed slashing the metaverse budget by up to 30% for 2026, which includes the virtual-worlds product Meta Horizon Worlds and its Quest virtual-reality unit. These upcoming cuts to Reality Labs' VR operations will likely result in layoffs as early as January.
Zuckerberg has reportedly asked all divisions to find 10% savings, but the metaverse unit was asked for much deeper cuts because it has been a total flop since its introduction early in the pandemic.
Here's more from the report:
The proposed metaverse cuts are part of the company's annual budget planning for 2026, which included meetings at Zuckerberg's compound in Hawaii last month, the people said. Zuckerberg has asked Meta executives to look for 10% cuts across the board, which has been the standard request during similar budget cycles the past few years, they added.
In 2021, Zuckerberg told investors in a founder's letter that the metaverse marked "the beginning of the next chapter for the internet — and the next chapter for our company."
Zuckerberg's failures continue piling up.
Meta AI – fail
Metaverse – fail
Meta glasses – fail
Meta Portal Services- fail
Meta Clubhouse – fail
Meta Threads – failTime to retire Zuckerberg. https://t.co/OW0IX6b4O7
— Ewan Morrison (@MrEwanMorrison) September 18, 2025
News of the metaverse cuts sent Meta shares up more than 5% in premarket trading in New York…
If the gains hold during the cash session, this would be the largest intraday jump since the 11% spike in late July. Year-to-date, shares are up 9.3% as of Wednesday's close.
In 2023…
Meta Hit With Trifecta Of Fails: Metaverse, Smart Glasses, Threads https://t.co/FLlVTDNZ5e
— zerohedge (@zerohedge) August 4, 2023
However, one area that hasn't been a failure is Meta's Ray-Ban smart glasses.
Tyler Durden
Thu, 12/04/2025 – 09:55