Mastodawn

Zuckerberg has blown 77 billion – enough money to revitalize entire countries – on an idea so overwhelmingly, obviously stupid that I have never once heard anyone, from the Thanksgiving avuncular table to the most wretched depths of social media, say they liked it or even tried it. He was so sure that it would revolutionize the world that he renamed his extremely famous company after it. And now he's on to the next thing that he's so very, very sure about.

The world needs direction from sober people who aim to improve the human condition, not the whims of a handful of billionaire princelings who absolutely, positively cannot be dissuaded from failing at unprecedented scale while chasing their own vainglory off the edge of a cliff.

someone on discord was unaware that there even *was* a released version of the facebook metaverse that you *could* try, which about sums that up 😂

Consensus Tullyality Dec 7

@0xabad1dea oh shit that's right

what was it called, horizon or something?

@0xabad1dea Wait what? That was a thing?

@gudenau @0xabad1dea clearly, it was a trillion dollar opportunity: https://cyberplace.social/@GossiTheDog/115663189943069630

Kevin Beaumont (@[email protected])

Attached: 3 images A reminder that every major financial institution declared the Metaverse as real, in many cases a multi trillion dollar market. It was all total bullshit.

Cyberplace

@0xabad1dea as in Horizon Worlds? They're certainly still trying to drag Quest users into it, kicking and screaming

Jernej Simončič �Dec 7

@0xabad1dea Well, that makes two of us – I thought it never left technical demo stage.

Kawaoneechan Dec 7

@jernej__s @0xabad1dea That's the best part.

It didn't!

@kawa @jernej__s @0xabad1dea
Hyperbolic but it is trash, yes. And Quest users now load straight into it when they turn on their headsets, instead of the homeworld they chose before.

@0xabad1dea
I read a post recently that outlined a likely reason: Facebook needs to stay a growth company unless they want to lose most of their value. It's the same reason NFTs moved into AI and why AI is simultaneously a god that will change everything and a poor word guesser.

Once a company transitions from "growth" to "stable" they lose the ability to print stock that will be accepted like money and their valuation tanks fast. That's why they keep making up bullshit that will never do anything -- to keep from maturing.

@RnDanger wait, that last sentence sounds like people who never got enough emotional support to stop reacting like teenagers. @0xabad1dea

@RnDanger @0xabad1dea that's likely something @pluralistic wrote.

@llogiq @0xabad1dea @pluralistic
That's probably where i read it 🙃
Edit: it was! https://pluralistic.net/2025/12/05/pop-that-bubble/

@0xabad1dea +1, did not know

לָקס (לא לותור) لاكس🏴Dec 7

@0xabad1dea wait, they actually released something???

@0xabad1dea 👍

@0xabad1dea How could they not know of the huge metaverse content creator protest that happened, in the metaverse?

@0xabad1dea I'm a VR affectionado and I didn't know lmao

vriska, thief of light

@oli it's what that zuckerberg eiffel tower meme was a screenshot of

Louise Auerhahn 🏳️‍🌈Dec 7

@0xabad1dea I didn't know the "Metaverse" was ever a real product! I thought it was just a marketing concept to get ppl excited about augmented reality glasses & similar doodads.

Eric McCorkle Dec 7

I actually didn't know that myself. I assumed it was the world's biggest vaporware.

John Timaeus Dec 7

Until you mentioned it, I'd forgotten about it. I suppose somewhere in the back of my brain I knew Metaverse was still a product. But I figured it was largely abandonware.

Ludwig Vielfrass Dec 8

@johntimaeus @0xabad1dea Which is a shame because look at this compelling content they created for it!

@lerxst @johntimaeus @0xabad1dea

Oh man, the graphics are worse than games from 20 years ago.

Ready Player One called and wants its idea back.

Jonathan Hartley Dec 8

@13reak Mastodon pedant reporting for duty! Ready Player One hyper-commercialized the idea from Snow Crash (92?) which could never have existed without Neuromancer (84?). If you like one, you may like the others. The last, in particular is a rare instance of quality writing in science fiction, a literary style that stands up to re-reading decades later.

Nicolás Alvarez Dec 8

@0xabad1dea I love the fact that Neopets today has more active users than Horizon Worlds ever had.

Kaitlyn~Ethylia Dec 8

@0xabad1dea TIL there was a released version of the facebook metaverse that you could actually try

Sam Livingston-Gray Dec 8

@0xabad1dea I actually bought a Quest 3S last month, but as far as I'm concerned it's purely a Beat Saber device, so I immediately went to the "Library" tab and disabled everything I could. This included a lot of things called "worlds," I think?

The OS on this thing is so hilariously terrible. It's not clear what different things do, how to find the setting you want, what apps are installed... just a complete UX disaster.

I wasn't aware there was a released version I could try either, and I follow tech news almost obsessively.

But yeah, imagine 77 billion spent on researching how to cost effectively generate petrol from air and solar power with a self contained and deploy-able device. It would allow countries to massively balance their Co2 emissions. I think it could work because there's already been research in this field and proofs of concept do exist.

For 77 billion you could make the entire chain into an easy to use product, and it probably would sell very well.

@0xabad1dea I also was very unaware of it. Then again I also try to stay clear of anything Zuckerberg as good as possible. Would stay away from WhatsApp as well if it wouldn't mean losing connection to some people who just do not want to use other options.

cinnamon roll Dec 8

@0xabad1dea I forgot that exists-

Jonas Platte Dec 10

@0xabad1dea +1, unaware. And why would I care anyways?