Meta's Reality Labs: A Costly Vision

Meta, the tech giant behind Facebook and Instagram, is reportedly planning to cut 10% of its Reality Labs workforce. This division, focused on virtual and augmented reality, has been a financial drain for the company.

Financial Struggles of Reality Labs

• Losses since inception (2020): $70 billion
• Latest quarter loss: $4.4 billion
• Sales in latest quarter: $470 million
• Warning from CFO Susan Li: Revenue for Reality Labs in the fourth quarter will be lower than the previous year.

Meta's Overall Performance

Despite the struggles of Reality Labs, Meta's overall revenue has been growing:

• Third quarter revenue: $51.2 billion
• Year-over-year increase: 26%

However, the poor performance of Reality Labs remains a significant concern.

Previous Layoffs

This is not the first time Meta has cut jobs:

• Earlier this year, the company laid off 600 employees from its Superintelligence Labs, focusing on artificial intelligence.

Stock Market Reaction

Investors are worried about Meta's ability to turn a profit on its big bets:

• Stock performance since the start of the year: Down 2.7%
• Stock performance on Monday: Closed down 1.7%