Facebook Rebrands as Meta, Tapping Cyberpunk for a Virtual Future

On October 28, 2021, Mark Zuckerberg announced the rebranding of Facebook Inc. to Meta, a name inspired by the concept of the metaverse from Neal Stephenson's 1992 cyberpunk novel Snow Crash. The new holding company will continue to control Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, while developing Oculus Rift VR headsets. The logo features a distorted infinity symbol resembling the letter M, in a soft blue palette, reflecting a minimalist design trend also seen in recent Airbnb and Kia logos. Zuckerberg aims to pivot the company toward an immersive, hologram-based internet experience, where users can teleport as avatars to concerts or offices within a decade. The rebranding follows scandals like Cambridge Analytica (2018) and the Facebook Papers leak, as the company seeks to reposition itself for a future centered on virtual reality and the metaverse.