How Mark Zuckerberg’s metaverse gamble backfired

Less than two years ago, Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg bet the house on the metaverse. Zuckerberg believed that his virtual reality world was the future. Now, with the rapid progress of Artificial Intelligence (AI), he appears to have made a calamitous mistake. The metaverse isn’t yet dead – but it’s future looks far from rosy.

Having recently taken a trip to the metaverse, I can’t say I’m surprised that Zuckerberg’s pet project has failed to catch on. At Meta’s shiny new offices in London’s King’s Cross, large black headsets were strapped over our eyes. Before long, by the wonders of Meta’s technology, we were transported from our real meeting room to a virtual one. Our faces suddenly seemed unfamiliar and we no longer had legs. Despite this affliction, the meeting proceeded as planned and we were taken on a tour through our new 3D surroundings – complete with interactive whiteboards, instant teleportation around the room and interchangeable panoramic views through the windows.