Meta scrapped the development of its health and messaging focused smartwatch in order to compete with the Apple Watch.
According to reports, employees were told on Friday that work on the project would be stopped as part of a cost-cutting effort.
Andrew Bosworth is the chief technology officer of Meta's Reality Labs division.
The rumors about Meta's plans to bring a smartwatch to market first appeared in February of 2021.
Meta was thought to be able to work using a cellular connection without the need for a tethering phone, and to run a version of the software from the internet giant. Meta was going to work with other companies to create accessories that would allow the display to be attached to backpacks.
Meta's internal reorganization will bring an end to all of its Portal projects. Portal was a brand of smart display with video calling capabilities that were exclusive to Meta.
Despite the release of several versions, Portal never really took off as a consumer device, despite Meta's attempts to promote it in the enterprise market. While supplies last, the company will continue to sell smart displays under the Portal brand.
Less than a year after the company laid off 11,000 people, structural changes to Meta are coming. The layoffs were the result of poor decisions, macroeconomic downturn, increased competition, and ads signal loss, all of which resulted in lower-than- expected revenue.
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