Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has announced this his company is investing $500 million into virtual reality and the Oculus Rift, with the social networking giant having already made $250 million worth of investments into VR developers, with plans to plug $250 million more into the market in the future.
Zuckerberg took to the stage during today’s Oculus Connect 3 conference, revealing that he was heavily betting on the future of his company’s major acquisition. With Facebook having purchased Oculus for $1 billion, the company already had a lot riding on the success of the Rift VR headset, and with the addition of these extra funds the company is now even more heavily indebted in the Rift’s future.
Zuckerberg revealed during the conference that in addition to his hefty $250 million investment and prospective $250 million for the development of VR games and movies further down the line, the company would also be investing $10 million into the development of educational VR content. No specifics were given regarding what this content would entail, though Zuckerberg noted that he was “excited” about this particular venture.
During the conference Zuckerberg highlighted how the Rift would soon boast extra compatibility with Facebook’s Messenger app, with him accepting a video call from his wife and taking a “virtual selfie” of her and his avatar. You can see the selfie below:
