Meta’s Metaverse Pivot: From VR to Mobile, and the Fallout

Meta is quietly obliterating its VR metaverse ambitions, leaving Workrooms users with a 2026 deadline—and no clear successor.

The company announced the discontinuation of Horizon Workrooms, its VR workspace app, effective February 16, 2026. Meta will also stop selling commercial VR headsets and managed Horizon services by February 20, 2026.

Reality Labs has laid off approximately 1,000 employees, shuttering three VR game studios and halting projects like Supernatural and Batman: Arkham Shadow.

Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth stated the Horizon team will "double down on bringing the best Horizon experiences and AI creator tools to mobile."

The company recommends alternatives like Arthur, Microsoft Teams, and Zoom Workplace for Workrooms users. Managed Horizon licenses will be free for existing customers until January 4, 2030.