Meta’s Head of XR Apologizes to Oculus Founder Regarding His Ousting

Meta CTO and Reality Labs chief Andrew ‘Boz’ Bosworth has issued a public apology to Palmer Luckey, the founder of Oculus who was ousted from the company in 2017 for political reasons.

Despite Meta (formerly Facebook) never officially confirming the reasons behind Luckey’s dismissal, CEO Mark Zuckerberg denied any political motive during a U.S. congressional hearing in 2018.

It was widely believed that Luckey’s support for a pro-Trump group led to his ousting in March 2017, just three years after Meta acquired Oculus for $2 billion.

“I got fired for no reason. I gave $10,000 to a pro-Trump group, and I think that’s something to do with it,” Luckey said in a 2018 Wall Street Journal interview, referencing his 2016 donation to an anti-Hillary Clinton ad campaign called ‘Nimble America’.

This strained relationship led Luckey to exit the consumer XR space entirely and start his own defense technology company, Anduril Industries.

Carmack’s Regret, Boz & Luckey Showdown

Former Oculus CTO John Carmack, who left the company in 2022, expressed regret in April for not supporting Luckey more during his time at Facebook. Carmack believed that if the former Oculus founders had united, the situation may have been different.

Carmack also attributed Luckey’s firing to internal employee pressure and claimed that Mark Zuckerberg did not have a strong personal stance on the matter.

In response to Carmack’s comments, Bosworth refuted Carmack’s speculations about an employee referendum and defended his actions before Luckey’s dismissal.

After a heated exchange, Luckey criticized Bosworth for his previous statements and actions regarding his departure from Oculus.

Boz Brokers Peace

Five months later, Luckey was invited back to Meta headquarters for the first time since his departure in 2017. Bosworth personally apologized to Luckey for his past comments and misinformation, expressing gratitude for Luckey’s contributions to VR.

Luckey accepted the apology and acknowledged the changes at Meta over the years, indicating a willingness to move forward from the past.

The reconciliation marked a positive step for both parties involved, signaling a potential new chapter in their relationship.

Luckey expressed that the Tablet exposé was almost precisely what he had hoped to achieve. The article also included kind words from Zuckerberg himself, as noted by Luckey in a recent X post. Zuckerberg praised Luckey for his contributions to VR and for successfully establishing multiple companies. He commended Luckey as a creative thinker and enjoyable collaborator, expressing regret over Luckey’s departure from Meta but acknowledging the importance of his work at Anduril for national security. Zuckerberg expressed hope for future collaborations with Luckey.