Meta’s metaverse leaves virtual reality

image via techcrunch.com
image via techcrunch.com

Meta has announced a major update for its immersive virtual world, Horizon Worlds, on Thursday that will see it leave the metaverse behind. The tech giant said it’s shifting focus for Horizon Worlds to be “almost exclusively mobile” and that it’s “explicitly separating” its Quest VR platform from the virtual world.

https://techcrunch.com/2026/02/20/meta-metaverse-leaves-vr-horizon-worlds-mobile/

WordPress.com adds an AI Assistant that can edit, adjust styles, create images, and more

image via techcrunch.com
image via techcrunch.com

With the new tool, you can adjust the site’s layout, its style, or other patterns by issuing commands to the AI assistant, and then see the changes reflected on the site as you work. These instructions don’t have to be precisely tailored prompts, either, the company notes. Instead, you can use more general language, like “make this section feel more modern or spacious,” “change my site’s colors to be brighter and bolder,” or “give me more font options that feel clean and professional.”

https://techcrunch.com/2026/02/17/wordpress-com-adds-an-ai-assistant-that-can-edit-adjust-styles-create-images-and-more/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=mastodon

With Apple’s new Creator Studio Pro, AI is a tool to aid creation, not replace it

image via techcrunch.com
image via techcrunch.com

Apple lays out a vision that suggests the productivity suite of the future is the one that focuses on the needs of creators — whether that’s filmmakers, musicians, artists, or anyone else enmeshed in a creative industry of some kind — and empowers them to be more efficient using AI. Apple sees AI as a tool that handles more of the basics and tedious tasks — like generating a slideshow for you to edit from your notes, extracting chord information from a song, searching across hours of video footage for the clip you need, changing the camera angle on your images, and more.

https://techcrunch.com/2026/01/28/with-apples-new-creator-studio-pro-ai-is-a-tool-to-aid-creation-not-replace-it/

Well, there goes the metaverse

image via techcrunch.com
image via techcrunch.com

Meta’s enormous bet on virtual reality ended last week, with the company reportedly laying off roughly 1,500 employees from its Reality Labs division — about 10% of the unit’s staff — and shutting down several VR game studios, according to The Wall Street Journal. It’s a huge reversal for a company that, just four years ago, staked its entire identity on the concept.

https://techcrunch.com/2026/01/19/well-there-goes-the-metaverse/

Bandcamp takes a stand against AI music, banning it from the platform

image via techcrunch.com
image via techcrunch.com

The music distribution platform Bandcamp announced in a Reddit post on Tuesday that it’s banning AI-generated music and audio. “We want musicians to keep making music, and for fans to have confidence that the music they find on Bandcamp was created by humans,” the company said. Bandcamp’s new guidelines state that music and audio generated “wholly or in substantial part by AI” is not permitted, and that it will not allow the use of AI tools to impersonate other artists or styles.

https://techcrunch.com/2026/01/14/bandcamp-takes-a-stand-against-ai-music-banning-it-from-the-platform/

Threads is developing in-message games

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Threads is exploring games in chats, beginning with a basketball game. Launching in-message games would give Threads an edge over competitors like X and Bluesky, which don’t offer built-in games. It’s also worth noting this isn’t the first time Meta has explored in-message gaming, as Instagram launched a hidden emoji game in DMs last year.

https://techcrunch.com/2026/01/06/threads-is-developing-in-message-games/