Some of the biggest names in tech are unhappy with the current state of the metaverse, with one refusing to even acknowledge the word.
Speaking about the current state of the virtual reality world, Facebook founder Zuckerberg wants us all to live in (in part so he can scan our facial expressions to show us ads), key executives at big companies don’t necessarily agree with the vision.
During a lot of news WSJ Tech Live conference earlier this week, Apple VP Greg Joswiak was asked by former tech reporter Joanna Stern to finish the phrase “the metaverse is…” to which he replied “…a word I will never use.” (via 9to5Mac). Oooh!
Zuckerberg, of course, took issue with the future “walled garden” that Apple may impose when it releases its mixed reality headset in 2023, believing that the metaverse (a term he coined and expects everyone to embrace) should be opened. So there is some prior relationship between the two firms here. You can see the interview with Gregg and fellow Apple CEO Craig Federgi in the YouTube video below:
Xbox boss Phil Spencer’s assessment of the current state of the metaverse was equally scathing. Speaking at the same event, he called it a “poorly constructed video game” in its existing form.
He said: “It’s a poorly constructed video game today. Building a metauniverse that’s like a living room is not how I want to spend my time. What I see in the world of the metaverse is that we’re in the early stages, and it’s going to evolve.”
Spencer’s comments are curious given that Microsoft is actually a key partner for Meta and the metaverse. Earlier this month, the company announced that Teams and Microsoft 365 apps are coming to the Meta Quest headset, and Xbox is also releasing a cloud gaming app. So it will be interesting to see how the comments trickle down to CEO Satya Nadella and the rest of Microsoft’s executive team.
Snap CEO Evan Spiegel, whose Snapchat apps and services have been somewhat disruptive in recent years, including in the AR realm, rounded out the tech titans with something to say about the metaverse. “The metaverse ‘lives inside a computer.’ The last thing I want to do when I get home from work during a long day is live in the computer,” he said. Fair enough.
Like Yahoo Finance points out, Spiegel previously said his company also refuses to use the word metaverse.
Apple, Xbox and Snap bigwigs take turns mocking Mark’s metaverse
