After almost 10 years of good and loyal service, John Carmack bids farewell to Meta. The group’s chief developer, specializing in virtual reality, says he is tired, disappointed and above all frustrated by a lack of ambient efficiency and the insufficient optimization of certain materials.
I came to tell you that I’m leaving. This weekend on Facebook, John Carmack, chief developer of Meta and figure of virtual reality within the group, publicly announced his departure. After many years with ID Software (attached to the development of some great video game successes, such as Doom, Wolfenstein or Quake), the interested party had joined Oculus VR in 2013, more or less a year before the company was acquired by Facebook.
Almost 10 years later, John Carmack throws in the towel, admitting in his post that he ” mixed feelings with regard to the internal organization of Meta. He denounces in particular a lack of efficiency within the teams, leading according to him to poor preparation for the inevitable strengthening of the competition as well as to possible budgetary restrictions.
A disappointed John Carmack… but not totally pessimistic for all that
Originally intended for internal distribution, John Carmack’s post on Facebook reflects the mixed feelings of the former chief developer of Meta. The ” Quest 2 is almost exactly what I wanted to see from the start “, he admits for example. ” Everything could have happened a little faster and better if different decisions had been made, but we built something quite close to what was needed “.
” The problem is our efficiency “, considers on the other hand John Carmack, who is then more virulent with regard to Meta, from its internal organization to its managerial practices. ” An organization that has known only inefficiency is ill-prepared for the inevitable competition and/or [restrictions budgétaires] “, he explains.
” We have a ridiculous amount of people and resources, but we constantly sabotage ourselves and waste our efforts. (…) I think our organization is operating at half the efficiency that would make me happy… “, continues Carmack, stern, before adding to have the impression of speaking in the void “ I have a voice at the highest level here, so I should be able to shake things up, but I’m obviously not convincing enough he says.
John Carmack, who should now tackle other projects within his company Keen Technologies, which specializes in AI, nevertheless remains optimistic about the future of Meta and its VR division. ” The fight can still be won. VR can bring something to most people in the world, and no company is better positioned than Meta to do so. “, he assures.
For context, this resignation comes less than a month after the launch of the Meta Quest Pro, Meta’s high-end VR headset, and while several other figures in the group have already left the ship. Among them, Sheryl Sandberg, former number 2 of Meta, or even Vivek Sharma, former boss of Horizon World, underlines BFM Tech.
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