Meta denies report it has stopped work on software for the metaverse

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Meta has denied a report that claimed it had stopped work on its flagship software for the metaverse.

The company, previously known as Facebook, has staked much of its future on the technology. It not only changed its name to reflect its interest in the metaverse, but has put vast amounts of resources into developing the software, services and systems required to power it.

But a report in The Information said that Meta had shelved at least some of those plans, suspending development of a project named XROS. That is intended to work like an operating system for the metaverse, and has been a central part of the discussion of the technology coming from Facebook in recent years.

The project has been in development since 2017, The Information reported, and had moreethan 300 people working on it.

It would help Meta move away from the operating system currently used in Oculus headsets, which is built on Android and therefore leaves the company dependent on Google.

But Meta says that report is wrong, and that the company is not scaling back its work on a “reality operating system”.

“We are not halting or scaling back our operations in building a reality operating system,” a spokesperson said.

“The team continues to make progress and we continue to invest in building for future computing platforms like AR glasses and wearable devices to help realize our metaverse vision.”