Meta Platforms will shut Horizon Worlds VR on Quest by June 15, 2026, marking a major strategy shift
Meta Platform will leave Quest Store by March 31, 2026, removing access to several popular VR spaces
Users can access VR worlds briefly; after June 15, Horizon Worlds will run only on mobile devices
Why Is Meta Shutting 'Horizon Worlds VR' After a Massive $80 Bn Bet | Read Here
Meta shuts Horizon Worlds on VR after heavy losses, shifts focus to AI, while keeping the platform alive as mobile
Meta to Shut Horizon Worlds
Summary
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Meta Platforms has announced it will shut the virtual reality version of Horizon Worlds. The company said the VR experience will be removed from Quest headsets by June 15, 2026, signalling a major shift in its metaverse plans.
“We are separating the two platforms so each can grow with greater focus, and the Horizon Worlds platform will become a mobile-only experience,” Meta said in a blog post.
The platform will be removed from the Quest Store by March 31, 2026. After that, users will lose access to several virtual spaces in VR, including Horizon Central and Events Arena.
Users can still explore other worlds in VR for a limited period. However, after June 15, the app will be taken off VR devices entirely, and Horizon Worlds will continue only as a mobile experience.
Why Did Meta Pull Back?
This decision follows years of big spending led by Mark Zuckerberg, who pitched the metaverse as the future of how people connect online. In 2021, he even renamed Facebook to Meta to back that idea.
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Back then, Zuckerberg said the metaverse could reach a billion users and drive huge online business. However, that plan never took off as expected.
Despite billions in spending, Horizon Worlds failed to draw users. It reportedly had only a few hundred thousand monthly users, far below expectations, with many people saying the experience felt slow and unfinished.
What Went Wrong With the Metaverse Push?
The financial damage has been massive. Meta’s Reality Labs unit, which looks after its VR projects, has lost nearly $80 billion since 2020, including a $6 billion loss in just one quarter of 2025.
The company has already taken corrective steps. It cut nearly 10% of staff in Reality Labs and shut down several in-house game studios. Some products have also been moved into maintenance mode.
This shift is not only about losses. The fast growth of artificial intelligence has pushed tech companies to rethink their plans, with many now putting more money into AI as it offers quicker and wider reach.
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Meta is also moving in that direction. The company has created new AI teams and bought start-ups to strengthen its focus, clearly moving away from its earlier metaverse push.
Still, the company is not ending Horizon Worlds completely. It plans to keep the platform alive as a mobile app to reach more users without the need for VR headsets.