Meta changing again
Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, is winding down its digital collectibles initiative on Instagram, just ten months after launching the feature to select users [2]. The initiative was first announced at the South by Southwest conference in Austin by Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Instagram’s parent company, who promised that non-fungible tokens (NFTs) would be coming to the picture and video-sharing app [2]. However, the company has paused the project “to focus on other ways to support creators, people, and businesses” [2].
Meta’s Commerce and Fintech lead, Stephane Kasriel, announced the change on Twitter [2]. According to Kasriel, the company learned a lot from the NFT initiative that it can apply to other products it is developing to support creators, people, and businesses on its apps [2]. Between October 2021 and December 2022, the price of Meta’s stock dropped 60%, recovering somewhat in the first quarter of 2023 and currently priced at $180.90 [2].
And we’ll continue investing in fintech tools that people and businesses will need for the future. We’re streamlining payments w/ Meta Pay, making checkout & payouts easier, and investing in messaging payments across Meta. [5/5]
— Stephane Kasriel (@skasriel) March 13, 2023
Moving Towards AI
Furthermore, Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, announced that the company is creating a new top-level product group to accelerate its work on AI tools as it tries to keep up with a renewed AI arms race among big tech companies [1]. Zuckerberg is backing away from the metaverse to focus on AI tools [2].
Mark Zuckerberg is a well-known figure in the tech industry and has been in the news recently for his company Meta’s NFT support “winding down” and the losses the company has taken since he changed the company. This article will delve into these topics in-depth and provide an analysis of the situation.
This move comes after Meta announced that it will be focusing on the Metaverse, a virtual world where people can interact with each other in a more immersive way. This change in direction is not surprising, as Meta has been pushing toward virtual reality for some time now, and NFTs do not necessarily fit in with that vision.
However, this is not the only issue that Meta has been facing. Since Zuckerberg changed the company from Facebook to Meta, the company has been facing a number of losses. In its latest earnings report, the company reported a net loss of $8.9 billion for the fourth quarter of 2021 [2]. This was due in part to a $10.4 billion write-down of the value of its virtual reality unit, Oculus. This is a significant loss for the company, and it has caused concern among investors and analysts alike.
Mark has been at the forefront of the company’s decision-making, and his leadership has been under scrutiny since he took the company in a new direction. Since he made the decision to pivot the company towards the metaverse, Meta has suffered a loss of almost $300 billion in market value. This has been attributed to the uncertainty surrounding the company’s future direction and the skepticism of investors regarding the metaverse. Critics have also raised concerns about Meta’s handling of data privacy and the impact of its platforms on mental health.
Troubling behavior
In February 2016, Zuckerberg addressed some troubling behavior within Facebook’s ranks, which had affected the company’s culture. In response to this, he sent a memo to all Facebook employees to emphasize the importance of fostering an open and inclusive culture. Zuckerberg has also penned op-eds defending his company against criticism, particularly around the use of personal data (2)(3).
Meta’s decision to wind down NFT support, coupled with the losses it has suffered since Zuckerberg changed the company’s direction, has led to scrutiny of the CEO’s leadership. However, it is important to note that Zuckerberg has taken steps to address internal issues and defend his company against external criticism. As the company continues to navigate the metaverse and other challenges, it will be interesting to see
It is important to note that Meta is not the only tech company to suffer losses in recent years. Many other tech giants, such as Amazon and Alphabet, have also reported losses due to investments in new technologies and ventures. However, Meta’s losses are significant, and they raise questions about the company’s direction and leadership.
Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta has been in the news recently for its NFT support “winding down” and the losses the company has taken since he changed the company. The shift towards the metaverse and away from NFTs is not surprising, but it does raise questions about the company’s priorities. Additionally, the losses that the company has suffered are significant, and they call into question the direction and leadership of the company. As a veteran financial and tech reporter, it is important to analyze these issues in-depth and provide a clear understanding of the situation.
