Meta Reverses Horizon Worlds VR Shutdown, Shifts to Maintenance Mode — Reality Labs' $75B Cumulative Loss

Meta has reversed its plan to completely shut down the VR version of its social platform 'Horizon Worlds,' opting instead for a 'maintenance mode' approach, as reported by Money Morning. Meta had originally planned to close the VR version on June 15 and remove the app from the Quest Store by March 31, but reversed course following strong pushback from users.

Maintenance mode means that while no new features will be developed and active support will cease, the existing service will continue to operate. This is effectively a 'life support' measure for Horizon Worlds — while Meta is not completely withdrawing from the metaverse business, it signals that active investment has ended.

Behind this decision lies the severe financial situation of Meta's metaverse division, Reality Labs. The division's cumulative operating losses have reached approximately $75 billion, making it one of the largest investment failures in tech history. When the company changed its name from Facebook to Meta in 2021 and declared its full-scale entry into the metaverse business, CEO Mark Zuckerberg had heavily promoted Horizon Worlds as the core of the next-generation social platform.

However, technical issues, insufficient user experience, and above all, stagnant user growth prevented Horizon Worlds from achieving the expected success. Meta is now significantly shifting its strategic focus from the metaverse to artificial intelligence (AI), accelerating massive investments in the AI field.

Meta's stock price has declined approximately 8% year-to-date, and market sentiment remains divided as large-scale AI investments continue. The transition from metaverse hype to the current AI boom reflects a broader trend across the technology industry, though some analysts express skepticism that massive AI investments will necessarily succeed either. The $75 billion loss vividly illustrates how costly strategic pivots can be for technology companies.