Meta shifts investments from hardware to voice recognition technologies

The same week that Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg purchased the artificial intelligence-based voice recognition technology company Audio Analytic in order to incorporate its unit working on metaverse development processes into Reality Labs, the company announced that it had canceled its smart display and smartwatch project. The company, which continues its investments in the metaverse, announced in a statement that more than 11,000 employees would be laid off. HANDE BERKTAN Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of American social media giant Meta, is making radical decisions for the future of his company and continues to shift some investments to the metaverse while canceling some projects. The company, which is in the midst of financing problems, has purchased the Cambridge-based startup Audio Analytic. While no financial details of the deal have been announced yet, it was stated that the startup will join Meta's Metaverse development unit Reality Labs. In other news, the social media giant has halted its smart display called Portal and its long-rumored smartwatch project. Mark Zuckerberg, the owner of social media giant Meta, recently announced that they have decided to lay off more than 11,000 employees, saying, “I did this wrong,” and that he takes responsibility. Audio Analytic, the voice recognition developer acquired by Meta, will join the Reality Labs Research arm, which also manages Meta’s metaverse of virtual reality worlds, holograms, and augmented reality that brings its metaverse functionality to the real world. Founded in 2010 by Dr. Chris Mitchell, the startup has offices in San Jose and California. Audio Analytics’ ai3 software helps device manufacturers, chipmakers, and AI-focused companies create connected products that instinctively recognize and respond to ordinary sounds, such as smoke alarms, breaking windowpanes, or a baby’s voice.