Mark Zuckerberg’s journey into the metaverse has not been polished. His once-risky bet, which cost him more than $100 billion, now appears to be paying off.
His net worth increased dramatically to $201 billion in less than two years, almost sixfold. The main reason for this escalate is the rapidly rising share price of Meta Platforms Inc., which has increased by approximately 60% this year.
As a result, Zuckerberg is once again fourth richest person in the world, second only to Jeff Bezos, Bernard Arnault and Elon Musk.
Metaverse: a mix
Despite these amazing numbers, metaworld remains a subject of controversy. While Zuckerberg maintains that this is the future of social interaction, many remain skeptical.
Some doubters believe that Meta’s performance resulted in more harm than good. Some critics argued that Zuckerberg’s fortune came less from the concept of the metaworld itself than from his attempts to capitalize on recent leaps in artificial intelligence.
Interestingly, Meta has made enormous efforts towards financial stabilization. This includes the launch of a $50 billion share repurchase program, as well as a 25% job reduction to streamline the organization.
Change of focus?
Zuckerberg continued to support the Metaverse despite financial problems. At recent events, he passionately discussed the integration of the real and virtual worlds, imagining a period where people communicate using holograms or avatars.
Still, several shareholders and insiders advise caution. They expressed reservations about investing more money in what many consider a project that is still far from universal acceptance.
Moreover, there is a growing belief that Zuckerberg should focus on the core Meta apps that generate almost all of the company’s revenue: Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp.
As the technology sector becomes increasingly competitive – especially with rivals like Google and Amazon making significant strides artificial intelligence— Zuckerberg may want to rethink his goals.
Waiting for something
As Meta continues to introduce up-to-date products such as the Quest 3 VR helmet and Ray-Ban clever glasses, these innovations should ultimately support the company escalate revenues.
Still, there’s a lot of skepticism among many investors who would rather see profits sooner rather than later. A company’s future prosperity will depend crucially on its ability to incorporate up-to-date technologies into its current systems.
Featured image from Fortune, chart from TradingView
