According to The Wall Street Journal, Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) plans to recruit 10,000 engineers in the EU in the next five years to develop a virtual realm it considers vital to its future and a significant new tech investment driver.
Facebook hiring staff to build “metaverse”
The social media behemoth announced on Sunday that it would begin a search for highly trained staff across the EU to assist in creating a “metaverse.” Metaverse is a virtual realm where users interact with one another using augmented and virtual reality technology. The company plans to hire mainly in Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, France, Poland, and Ireland.
Facebook indicated in a blog post that its investment “is a vote of confidence in the strength of the European tech industry and the potential of European tech talent. As we begin the journey of bringing the metaverse to life, the need for highly specialized engineers is one of Facebook’s most pressing priorities.”
Over the summer, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg outlined his vision for the metaverse, portraying it as a “successor” to the mobile internet and a major driver of new technology investment. Last month, the corporation announced intentions to invest $50 million in the virtual sector, estimating that sections will take 10 to 15 years to complete.
Nvidia Corp., Roblox Corp., Microsoft Corp, and Epic Games Inc. are among the leading tech companies building software and hardware for the metaverse or their virtual worlds within.
EU increasing regulation on big tech companies
Facebook’s EU hiring comes as the EU is discussing several legislation packages to limit the dominance of giant digital and social media corporations. These measures would be supported by the ability to levy significant fines. The social media giant has stated that it supports additional laws, including portions of the EU proposals, but has expressed reservations about certain of them. In the blog post, Facebook stated:
The EU also has an important role to play in shaping the new rules of the internet.
Following a series of articles by The Wall Street Journal, based in part on extensive internal company communications, that provide a unique look at the company’s struggles to manage systems and products at the core of its operational success, the company is facing increased regulatory scrutiny.
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