Rumors surrounding the potential abandonment of Meta’s metaverse plans have been making the rounds, but according to Meta‘s Head of Global Business Group, Nicola Mendelsohn, these speculations are false. During a recent press event in New York City, Mendelsohn highlighted the company’s continued interest in the metaverse, explaining that the tech giant is fully committed to the project, although achieving the envisioned concept may take five to ten years.
These words come as a direct response to the growing skepticism around Meta’s increasing focus on artificial intelligence. Many believe that the company has shifted its attention from the metaverse to the current buzz surrounding generative AI tools. However, Mendelsohn’s declaration emphasizes Meta’s strong interest in both fields.
Looking at the numbers, Meta’s Reality Labs, a metaverse-focused division, reportedly suffered a $3.9 billion loss in the first quarter of 2023, which is around $1 billion more than its loss in the same period in 2022. Despite these financial setbacks, Meta remains unwavering in its determination to combine generative AI and metaverse technology.
The introduction of Meta’s AI Sandbox, an ad software suite that utilizes generative AI to create targeted ad copy, crop photos and videos, and turn text prompts into ad background images, suggests that the company plans for AI and metaverse integration in the near future. Meta CTO, Andrew Bosworth, had previously teased these upcoming tools in March.
Mendelsohn explained that in the future, generative AI technologies will be utilized to build 3D spaces more efficiently, significantly simplifying the current process. John Hegeman, VP of Monetization at Meta, added that AI will play a crucial role in metaverse development, and the two technologies will collectively create value for users.
With other platforms like Oncyber already introducing tools like the Magic Composer, powered by OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which enables users to customize their digital environments using text commands, it’s evident that AI and the metaverse are converging. However, it’s worth noting that Meta may face stiff competition from Apple as it enters the metaverse hardware market with a mixed reality headset expected to be announced soon.
In conclusion, Meta remains committed to its metaverse plans, while simultaneously venturing deeper into the AI space. The company’s ongoing investments in both technologies are expected to lead to groundbreaking synergies that will shape our digital future. However, Meta must also prepare to face tough competition from other tech giants as the race to the metaverse and AI domains continues.
Source: Decrypt
