Global Crash, IG Explosive Harm, Developers Depart for a16z, Facebook Firmly Establishes Metaverse Layout, EU Opens Up Thousands of Job Openings

Despite facing two global outages in a single month, revelations that Facebook was aware of the harm to teenagers' mental health from Instagram internally, and digital currency developers leaving a16z, Facebook remains steadfast in its metaverse strategy, announcing plans to create 10,000 job openings in the European Union over the next five years.

Facebook Plans to Create 10,000 Jobs in Europe to Expand into the Metaverse

According to a recent announcement by Facebook's Global Affairs Chief Nick Clegg and Chief Product Officer Javier Olivan, Facebook is set to release 10,000 top engineers in the European Union over the next five years, citing strong confidence in Europe's technological industry capabilities and talent pool. They stated:

The EU possesses numerous advantages, including a large consumer market, top universities, and high-end talent. This is why we have made substantial investments over the years, such as partnering with the Technical University of Munich to fund the establishment of an Artificial Intelligence Ethics Research Center, investing in AI research in France, and establishing the Facebook Reality Labs office in Cork, Ireland.

The key countries for recruitment are expected to be Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Poland, the Netherlands, and Ireland.

Facebook has reiterated its commitment to developing the metaverse multiple times this year, especially after facing negative news in the latter half of the year, with the digital currency wallet Novi, which was claimed to be launched in August, still pending.

Developers of Digital Currency at Facebook Move to a16z Crypto

According to reports from CNBC, two top developers of Facebook's digital currency, Riyaz Faizullabhoy and Nassim Eddequiouaq, have resigned and joined the a16z Crypto team.

Nassim Eddequiouaq will serve as the Chief Security Officer, while Riyaz Faizullabhoy will be the Chief Technology Officer.

David Marcus, head of Facebook's payment business Facebook Financial and leader of F2, mentioned in an interview in August that the digital wallet Novi was in a launch-ready state, emphasizing that Facebook would present the "Diem-less" version of the digital wallet Novi as the final solution they aimed to introduce.

Despite his belief that pairing the digital currency Diem with the Novi wallet would allow users to enjoy low-cost and efficient cross-border remittances, nearly two months have passed with no sign of Novi's imminent release apart from sporadic negative news.

In addition, earlier this month, Instagram whistleblower and former Facebook employee Frances Haugen testified in a hearing, exposing Facebook's knowledge of the harm Instagram poses to the mental health of young people but choosing to ignore it.

The saga continues as Haugen and another whistleblower, Sophie Zhang, are set to testify in the UK Parliament later this month, with the European Parliament also following suit by scheduling a major tech company hearing on 11/8, where Haugen will be invited to attend.