A still image from video provided by Facebook shows Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s chief executive, announcing an overhaul, de-emphasizing Facebook’s name and rebranding itself as Meta. Zuckerberg has been committed to building the “metaverse,” a composite universe melding online, virtual and augmented worlds that people can seamlessly traverse. (Facebook via The New York Times)
No longer. On Thursday, the social networking giant took an unmistakable step toward an overhaul, de-emphasising Facebook’s name and rebranding itself as Meta. The change comes with a new logo designed like an infinity-shaped symbol, slightly askew, almost like a pretzel. Facebook, Instagram and other apps will remain, but under the Meta umbrella.
The move punctuates how CEO Mark Zuckerberg plans to refocus his Silicon Valley company on what he sees as the next digital frontier, which is the unification of disparate digital worlds into something called the metaverse. At the same time, renaming Facebook may help distance the company from the many social networking controversies it is facing, including how it spreads hate speech and misinformation.
“I’ve been thinking a lot about our identity” with this new chapter, Zuckerberg said, speaking at a virtual event to showcase Facebook’s technological bets of the future. “Over time, I hope we’re seen as a metaverse company.”
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