Shares of meta

The big picture: Mark Zuckerberg's Metaverse ambitions continue to look like a money pit, costing Meta tens of billions of dollars over the last two years. The company's 2022 year-end financial statements compound prior heavy losses from Reality Labs, but Meta's leadership remains committed to the venture. Meta's financial statements for Q4 2022 show that its VR division's losses increased compared to its serious money burn from prior quarters in the year. However, that didn't stop Meta's stocks from experiencing one of their best days. Reality Labs hemorrhaged $4.3 billion in Q4 2022. Including the $3.7 billion burnt in Q3, the $3 billion sunk in Q2, and the $2.96 billion thrown away in Q1, Meta's Metaverse division losses for 2022 total $13.7 billion. That number follows the $10.2 billion Reality Labs lost throughout 2021. As the costs mounted last year, CEO Mark Zuckerberg maintained that the company's efforts would pay off in the next decade and that thinking hasn't … [Read more...] about Meta’s Reality Labs lost $14 billion last year

Facebook parent Meta had a rough 2022. The social media giant laid off thousands of workers , reported its first revenue drop and saw a decline in daily active users on Facebook . Now Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg says the company is focusing heavily on efficiency in 2023 as it continues to invest in the metaverse and artificial intelligence. For the last 18 years, the social network has grown rapidly, but it's entering a new phase, Zuckerberg said. "It's very hard to really crank on efficiency while you're growing that quickly and I just think we're in a different environment now," he said during a call with analysts on Wednesday after Meta reported better-than-expected revenue in the fourth quarter. If the company becomes more efficient, he said, Meta will be able to do better product work and become a more fun place to work because employees will get more done. The focus shows how Meta is responding to economic uncertainty as advertisers pull back spending. Meta has … [Read more...] about After Mass Layoffs, Zuckerberg Says Meta Focused on ‘Efficiency’

Apple's iPhone sales fell more than 8% to nearly $65.8 billion as people struggled to find the company's new iPhone 14 during the holiday shopping season, amid production slowdowns and other delays related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The three months of Apple's fiscal first quarter, ending in December, were marked by strong demand but limited supplies for the company's latest smartphones, in particular its $999 iPhone 14 Pro series. Apple faced other challenges as well. Its Mac computer division too, including its MacBook laptops , reported sales fell nearly 29% to $7.7 billion. The company's wearables and accessories business also notched sales that dropped more than 8% to about $13.5 billion, despite Apple having introduced a new extreme sports-focused $799 Apple Watch Ultra . Apple CEO Tim Cook blamed several factors, including manufacturing delays, the fluctuating price of the US dollar across the world, and especially strong sales for its then-newly redesigned … [Read more...] about Apple’s iPhone, Mac Sales Fell During the Holidays Amid Supply Struggles

The tech industry was already large before the COVID-19 pandemic began upending lives around the world three years ago. But it continued to grow, as we all became ever more reliant on our smartphones, computers and videoconference calls. Now Apple is the latest tech giant to signal that this period of growth may be coming to an end. The company reported that sales of its most important product, the iPhone, fell more than 8%, to nearly $65.8 billion. The reason, Apple said, included several factors, such as the fluctuating price of the US dollar across the world and especially strong sales of its products in the prior year. But the real crunch came from COVID-19 shutdowns late last year across the Chinese manufacturing centers Apple relies on . The results led to protests in China , and supply shortages for Apple's iPhones, in particular its $999 iPhone 14 Pro series. Apple CEO Tim Cook said many of those manufacturing problems have been resolved, for now. All told, … [Read more...] about Apple’s Pandemic Boom for iPhone and Mac Sales Hit a Snag