A leaked memo from Meta’s top brass claims that the company is using 2025 to determine whether the metaverse was a “legendary misadventure” and will be pushing forward with lots of new AI hardware.
The company is still dealing with how underwhelming the metaverse has been and is now looking for ways to bolster the tech. Specifically, the company’s head of reality labs, Andrew Bosworth, claims that the company needs to get Horizon Worlds to break out on mobile for the company’s “long-term plans to have a chance,” according to the memo obtained by Business Insider.
In the same memo, Bosworth mentioned that Meta is working on half a dozen new AI-powered wearables but didn’t mention much else. That said, after selling over a million Meta Ray-Bans in 2024, it seems like smart glasses are the company’s best bet at a successful hardware play.
Rumours have been circulating that the company is developing a sportier version of its AI glasses with Oakley and a newer model with a small heads-up display to show notifications and image previews, but it’s still unclear which of these are nearing release. I’d expect the new styles of the existing tech, but Bosworth’s memo mentions driving retention with mixed reality, which could suggest something with a screen.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg told investors at the end of January that 2025 could be a defining year for smart glasses. His theory is that many tech products have their breakout year in the third generation, so he’s hoping the same will happen for smart glasses. He also needs it to happen. The company has been funnelling money into its mixed-reality division for years, with losses of around $60 billion USD since 2020.
That said, the Meta Ray-Bans feel a little too “techie” to be picked up by the average person, and I worry they will receive even less adoption than smart speakers, which were the fad five or so years ago.
A Bloomberg story says that the social media company is also working on two new Quest VR headsets, and I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw one near the end of 2025 as the company looks to keep its brand near the cutting edge of VR innovation. Apple stole the show with the Vision Pro in 2024, so it would make sense for Meta to retaliate even further in 2025.
Source: Business Insider, Bloomberg
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