Meta’s latest developer update brings a quiet but major strategy shift: the company is shifting its Metaverse ambitions away from virtual reality and focusing almost exclusively on mobile experiences. In its Horizon 2026 update, Meta confirmed that it is separating its VR platform from Horizon Worlds and “shifting the focus of Worlds to be almost entirely mobile.” The move is intended to give both platforms room for independent growth and help developers reach a larger audience.
The message is clear: VR is no longer the primary gateway to the metaverse; Telephones are. Meta says it began experimenting with mobile versions of Horizon Worlds last year and has seen strong momentum. Now the company plans to go all-in, citing the potential to connect with billions of users through its social platforms. The company also announced that Mobile Worlds grew from zero to over 2,000 experiences in a single year, with monthly mobile users more than quadrupling.
VR hasn’t gone away, but it’s no longer the main stage
Meta is careful to emphasize that VR isn’t going anywhere. The company says it plans to continue making major investments in VR hardware and remains one of the biggest supporters of this area. What is changing, however, is the approach to VR development. Instead of developing everything in-house, Meta now plans to focus more on funding individual projects and supporting third-party developers with training, case studies, consulting and other resources designed to help developers grow and better understand VR audiences over time.
At the same time, Horizon Worlds, once positioned as the flagship social VR platform, is being redesigned primarily for mobile players. Meta is now prioritizing mobile devices to compete with major social gaming platforms like Roblox and Fortnite, rather than focusing solely on headset launches.
This move follows years of slower-than-expected VR growth and internal restructuring within Meta’s Reality Labs division. The company has cut costs and shifted resources toward AI, wearables and mobile experiences. This shift makes sense considering that VR remains a niche market while mobile games and social platforms attract billions of users worldwide. By moving Horizon Worlds to mobile, Meta immediately expands its potential audience.
What this means for developers is that future Metaverse experiences will increasingly be designed for touchscreens rather than headsets. For users, this means the Metaverse may feel less like a futuristic VR destination and more like another social app on your phone. In short, the metaverse has not disappeared. It just went out of the headset and into your bag.
