Metaverse: Did the Dream End Before It Even Began? The Story of the $70 Billion That Went Up in Smoke

Mate, remember just a few years ago when everyone on social media was going on about the metaverse as if it was the next promised land? They kept telling us: "Get ready, real life is over; everyone’s heading to the virtual world." The promises were pouring down like rain, and Mark Zuckerberg, the bloke who reshaped social media, was putting his full weight behind this new frontier. He even rebranded his company from Facebook to "Meta" just to prove he meant business. And to be honest, back then, it all felt like a dream destined to come true.

But... just last week, news dropped that came as a bit of a shock to anyone following the story. Meta’s massive metaverse project, Horizon Worlds, was officially shut down. And not just shut down, but it took a staggering $70 billion down the drain with it. Seventy billion! A number that makes you stop and think: was this all just an illusion? Did the entire world get swept up in an idea that looked flashy from afar but was hollow inside?

From 'The Family Experiment' to the Billionaire Escape

This whole story, by the way, brings to mind a couple of books that came out in recent years. If you’d read them five years ago, you’d have thought the authors were just being overly pessimistic, or maybe had a crystal ball. The first one is called "The Family Experiment". It’s about a family trial in a virtual world, and how that world can turn into a gilded cage rather than a sanctuary. The second, which caused quite a stir, is "Survival of the Richest: Escape Fantasies of the Tech Billionaires". This one talked about the wealthy entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley and how their dreams of building virtual worlds are just a way to escape harsh realities—and even escape ordinary people, whom they see as the root of the world's problems. Just imagine: instead of tackling real-world issues, they’d rather build private worlds for themselves and their kids. Isn’t that something?

And that’s precisely what happened with Zuckerberg’s project. The venture that was supposed to be a platform for everyone turned into a massive bubble. People tried virtual reality (VR) at first, but quickly felt the emptiness. Sure, the experience was novel initially, but spending hours with goggles over your eyes, interacting with cartoon-like avatars, just wasn’t a genuine substitute for meeting friends at a café by the sea in Jeddah or Riyadh.

• Reason one for the failure: The cost. The hardware is pricey, and the tech requires constant development.
• Reason two: The cold social experience. Quite simply, conversations in the metaverse felt like talking to a wall.
• Reason three: The gap between promise and reality. We were promised limitless worlds, but what we got were worlds that were mostly empty.

What About Love and Connection? The 'Nevermet' Story

Amidst this bubble, apps like "Nevermet - VR Dating Metaverse" emerged. The idea was to find your partner through the virtual world before meeting them in real life. The concept itself was nice, especially in an era where relationships have become more complicated. But the question is: can you truly feel real emotions for someone you only meet as an avatar?

On paper, it was the perfect solution for those who struggle with shyness or social anxiety. But reality proved that human emotions can’t be reduced to virtual gestures. Many users tried the app, but most ended up returning to traditional dating apps. Because they simply discovered that a real touch, eye contact, and body language are what build a genuine connection. Pixels can't create real chemistry between two people.

The Extinction of Genuine Human Experience

All of this brings me to another fascinating book: "The Extinction of Experience: Being Human in a Disembodied World". This one talks about the real danger we were facing during the metaverse hype. The danger wasn't about failing technologically, but about succeeding to the point where we lose our humanity. Imagine reaching a stage where we’d rather sit alone at home with goggles on than go out and breathe the morning air or have a coffee with friends.

Meta’s spectacular failure might actually have saved us from that fate. Sure, we lost $70 billion (a colossal sum, but it’s big tech’s money), but we gained a much more valuable lesson: no technology can ever replace the innate human need for physical connection and genuine emotion. Here in Saudi Arabia, and across the world, we need reality, not an escape from it.

So, what do you think? Is this the end of the metaverse for good, or just a setback before it returns in a different form? Let me know in the comments, because I think this story isn’t over yet—but it certainly ended in a way no one expected.