Facebook Enjoys Revenue Growth During ‘Year of Efficiency’ Even as Metaverse Losses Pile Up

Facebook’s first-quarter earnings report for 2023 showcased a surge in users and revenue, despite its Reality Labs metaverse unit continuing to struggle with significant losses. The Company’s metaverse division suffered losses of $3.99 billion on revenues of just $339 million.

Engadget reports that despite its Reality Labs metaverse division still suffering from significant losses, Facebook (now known as Meta) reported strong first-quarter 2023 earnings including an increase in users and revenue. The company’s growth has not been hampered by CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s “year of efficiency,” as Facebook added 37 million users in the first quarter, bringing its total daily users to 2.037 billion. The family of apps owned by Facebook also broke a record by surpassing 3 billion daily users for the first time.

Mark Zuckerberg reported Q1 revenue of $28.6 billion, up 3 percent from the same period last year. This is the first increase in revenue for Facebook in almost a year. This growth occurred despite ongoing cost-cutting measures that have resulted in thousands of job losses, with additional layoffs planned for next month.

CNBC reported that Reality Labs, the division in charge of creating augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) technologies for the metaverse, suffered an operating loss of $3.99 billion in the first quarter. When compared to Meta’s overall quarterly revenue, the unit only brought in $339 million in revenue.

Zuckerberg addressed concerns about the company’s commitment to the metaverse during a call with analysts, stating, “A narrative has developed that we’re moving away from focusing on the metaverse vision. So I just want to say upfront that that’s not accurate. We’ve been focusing on both AI and the metaverse for years now, and we will continue to focus on both.” He added that the company was preparing to launch its “next-generation consumer virtual and mixed reality device” later in the year.

The CEO also discussed his plans to introduce AI agents and generative AI tools for the company’s apps, saying, “I think that there’s an opportunity to introduce AI agents to billions of people in ways that will be useful and meaningful. We’re exploring chat experiences in WhatsApp and Messenger, visual creation tools for posts on Facebook and Instagram and ads, and, over time, video and multimodal experiences as well.”

Despite the company’s cost-cutting initiatives and targeted layoffs for 21,000 employees, Facebook is still making significant investments in the metaverse. As of early December 2022, data from the research firm NPD Group indicated a 2 percent year-over-year decline in VR headset sales in the United States. In response, Facebook lowered the cost of its Quest 2 and Quest Pro VR headsets in March.

It seems Zuckerberg’s obsession with the metaverse has not lost any steam.

Read more at Engadget and CNBC here.

Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship. Follow him on Twitter @LucasNolan