Mark Zuckerberg's Meta Slashes VR Roles In Reality Labs: Retail Buzz Rises As Q1 Earnings Day Nears

Meta Platform, Inc. (META), which used job cuts to fight the inflation-induced softness in 2022, has persisted with the strategy as President Donald Trump's tariffs threaten a global downturn.

CNBC reported that a company spokesperson confirmed an unspecified number of employees working at the Oculus Studios units have been laid off. The unit develops virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) games and content for Meta's Quest VR headset.

"Some teams within Oculus Studios are undergoing shifts in structure and roles that have impacted team size," the company spokesperson told CNBC.

"These changes are meant to help Studios work more efficiently on future mixed reality experiences for our growing audience, while still delivering great content for people today."

Some employees at the Supernatural VR workout app were also let go.

The company reportedly terminated roughly 5% of the lowest performers in February.

Meta's post-COVID-19 right-sizing started in November 2022, when it formally announced plans to lay off 10,000 employees, accounting for about 13% of its workforce. The cuts were aligned with the "efficiency mantra" spearheaded by co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

It followed up by eliminating another 10,000 workers in March 2023. In the second half of 2024, the axe fell on those employed at Instagram, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and Reality Labs.

Retail investors on Stocktwits were largely positive about the development, going by the most recent chatter.

A bullish watcher pointed out that the Reality Labs unit, which includes Oculus Studios, generated a loss of $5 billion in the fourth quarter.

Another user noted the after-hours rally in  Meta stock. They saw it as a sympathy move with Alphabet, which said following its first-quarter results that its advertising revenue remained resilient.

Meta derived about 97% of its December-quarter revenue from advertising.

The social media giant is scheduled to release its first-quarter results on Wednesday after the market closes. 

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