Disney Ditches Metaverse Plans During Layoffs

Just as Disney creates worlds, it can also destroy them. The happiest company/place on earth no longer has a dedicated Metaverse department. According to a Tuesday, Disney has cut its entire “next-generation storytelling and consumer experiences unit.” Wall Street Journal report.

It’s a first look at how the company plans to focus its planned layoffs of thousands of employees. Disney announced it would cut 7,000 jobs (about 3% of the total workforce) in February investor callamidst a rather Grim earnings report for the first quarter of 2023. According to the WSJ’s unnamed sources, the Metaverse workers were the first to leave.

The Storytelling and Experiences team, consisting of about 50 employees, was responsible for tackling the Metaverse strategy. The next-gen storytelling unit should reportedly find ways to incorporate Disney characters, narrative, and other aspects of the company’s vast compendium of intellectual property into new types of interactive, digital experiences. Specifically, the company was investigating new “applications in fantasy sports, theme park attractions and other consumer experiences,” according to the WSJ.

However, what exactly the division actually delivered and developed in its brief existence is unclear. Disney assembled its Metaverse unit just last year and appointed a long-time head of the company Mike White is to lead the prosecution. Notably, White will remain at Disney after the department’s dissolution, although all of his subordinates have been fired, the Journal reported. Although his new role within the company has not yet been determined.

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Gizmodo reached out to Disney with questions about the ongoing layoffs and the newly cut team, but didn’t immediately receive a response.

Though layoffs in general are a misguided business strategy Disney’s decision to abolish its metaverse might be a good one after all – considering how exactly a “metaverse” differs from any other virtual reality or life sim video game remains to be seen.

Even Meta, the company that is almost certainly spent more on Metaverse Machinations Like No Other, recently decided to switch to greener pastures. Earlier this month, Meta announced this new priority would be artificial intelligence. If even Meta can’t get the metaverse up and running with an investment of $1 billion a month, Disney’s patented Imagineering probably wouldn’t either.

But It appears that Disney is also working on getting into the business youngest AI obsession. earlier this month at South of Southwestintroduced the company It is goals of the mission “emotionally intelligent AI robots” that can emotionally connect with guests at his amusement parks.