Meta has officially announced the closure of its social VR platform Horizon Worlds on Quest headsets. Users received notifications that the app will be removed from the store on March 31, 2026, and the final shutdown of the service will occur on June 15.
This is reported by Business • Media
After this, Horizon Worlds will only be available as a mobile application, but several features will be unavailable. In particular, users will lose the ability to make in-game purchases, use digital items, and receive certain bonuses related to the platform’s ecosystem.
Reasons for the Closure of Horizon Worlds
Horizon Worlds has long been Meta’s flagship project in the development of the metaverse. It was through this direction that the company underwent a major rebranding in 2021, changing its name from Facebook to Meta. At that time, management emphasized that the metaverse would be the next stage in the evolution of digital technologies. However, despite significant investments and collaborations with well-known brands and artists, the project failed to gain widespread popularity.
The monthly audience of Horizon Worlds remained at a level of several hundred thousand, which is significantly below expectations. The quality of graphics and user experience faced numerous complaints. Viral images featuring avatars without legs and technical flaws, including those involving Mark Zuckerberg, became subjects of ridicule online.
Strategic Changes and Cost-Cutting
In light of the challenging demand situation, Meta began to optimize costs. In February 2026, the company laid off about 10% of its employees in the Reality Labs division, which is responsible for the VR direction. Since 2020, the division has incurred losses of nearly $80 billion.
Industry experts believe that the key issue has been the limited number of VR device owners. Many people are not willing to regularly use VR headsets, which significantly limits the potential of such platforms.
“Meta was trying to solve a problem that doesn’t exist,” said Mike Pruelks, vice president of the research firm Forrester.
Despite the conclusion of the Horizon Worlds project in VR format, Meta does not plan to completely abandon VR technologies. The company will continue to invest in the development of new devices, including headsets and smart glasses, and will also strengthen its initiatives related to artificial intelligence, which is becoming one of the corporation’s main priorities.