Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has announced today that the company formerly known as Facebook is now named ‘Meta’.
The name change had been signalled for weeks, and became a concrete reality today, as the company battled numerous allegations brought to light by so-called ‘whistleblowers’.
The change is also reflective of Zuckerberg’s desire to change the company’s focus from that of a social media platform to a ‘metaverse company’. According to company promotional material, the ‘Metaverse’ is a ‘place where we’ll connect and play in 3D’, or ‘the next evolution of social connection.’
Announcing @Meta — the Facebook company’s new name. Meta is helping to build the metaverse, a place where we’ll play and connect in 3D. Welcome to the next chapter of social connection. pic.twitter.com/ywSJPLsCoD
— Meta (@Meta) October 28, 2021
“We are a company that builds technology to connect,” Zuckerberg declared when announcing the name change on Thursday during the company’s Connect 2021 event.
“Together, we can finally put people at the centre of our technology. And together, we can unlock a massively bigger creator economy.”
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg ascends into the Metaverse during Connect 2021 Keynote pic.twitter.com/wJKqgE8MKl
— Jane "Not A Twïtter Employee" Manchun Wong (@wongmjane) October 28, 2021
The trading name ‘Meta’ was aquired by Zuckeberg in 2017 and has been operating a ‘literature science platform’ called Meta Science since, from headquarters in Redwood City, California. According to Zuckerberg, he has been thinking about rebranding Facebook for some time, at least since the company acquired Whatsapp in 2012 and later Instagram in 2014.
