Jasper, an Early Generative AI Winner, Cuts Internal Valuation as Growth SlowsRead more

The Metaverse Money Pit: How Meta’s $70 Billion Bet Compares to Tech’s Biggest Gambles

Is Meta Platforms’ $70 billion bet on the metaverse shaping up as the biggest money pit ever in tech?

Perhaps. There are few precedents—if any—for a company spending as heavily as Facebook’s owner is to develop a new tech platform, an immersive world Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg envisages as “the next chapter” of the internet. And by Zuckerberg’s own telling, it could be another eight years or more—the “end of the decade”—before Meta starts to see a payoff. That begs the question of whether Meta will ever get enough of a return to justify the investment.

We decided to take a stab at comparing what Meta is spending on its big new bet to what other companies have invested on new platforms. It’s striking that in the past, companies like Apple and Google developed groundbreaking new technologies—such as the iPhone and Android mobile software—while spending a fraction of what Meta is investing. And for both Apple and Google, those investments were spectacular successes. Both companies continued to invest in their new technologies, but much of that investment came after launch, when the payoff was clearer.

Access on the go
View stories on our mobile app and tune into our weekly podcast.
Join live video Q&A’s
Deep-dive into topics like startups and autonomous vehicles with our top reporters and other executives.
Enjoy a clutter-free experience
Read without any banner ads.
Former Apple design chief Jony Ive and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Photos by Getty.
Exclusive
Designer Jony Ive and OpenAI’s Sam Altman Discuss AI Hardware Project
Jony Ive, the renowned designer of the iPhone, and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman have been discussing building a new AI hardware device, according to two people familiar with the conversations.
From left to right: Blair Effron, Robert Pruzan and David Handler. Photos by Getty; Tidal Partners.
Exclusive Finance
Disputes, Employee Misconduct Rattle Centerview’s Silicon Valley Dreams
The San Francisco Bay Area–based bankers at Centerview Partners, the investment bank that advised Silicon Valley Bank’s owner and Credit Suisse through recent turmoil, got two doses of bad news last week.
Art by Clark Miller
Exclusive startups entertainment
MasterClass Takes a Crash Course in Frugality
MasterClass had a problem with the shoot featuring its latest star instructor, Walt Disney Co. CEO Bob Iger.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Photos via Getty
Exclusive microsoft ai
How Microsoft is Trying to Lessen Its Addiction to OpenAI as AI Costs Soar
Microsoft’s push to put artificial intelligence into its software has hinged almost entirely on OpenAI , the startup Microsoft funded in exchange for the right to use its cutting-edge technology.
From left: Paul Graham, Garry Tan and Michael Seibel. Photos by Getty. Art by Mike Sullivan.
Exclusive startups ai
Y Combinator’s Garry Tan Goes to the Mat
Garry Tan was in his happy place. Surrounded by food trucks and techies basking in San Francisco’s September sun, the CEO of Y Combinator snapped selfies with entrepreneurs as he meandered through a crowd of 2,700 attendees at the startup accelerator’s annual alumni event.
Dave Rogenmoser, cofounder of Jasper. Photo via Getty.
Exclusive startups ai
Jasper, an Early Generative AI Winner, Cuts Internal Valuation as Growth Slows
Jasper AI, an early darling of the generative artificial intelligence boom, has cut the internal value of its common shares 20%, according to former employees who were notified by the company.