Oculus Co-Founder Iribe Is Leaving Facebook

Oculus Co-Founder Brendan Iribe is leaving Facebook.

Iribe—pictured above alongside Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg at an event in 2015—follows several other executives who have exited Facebook as of late, including Instagram Co-Founders Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger, who cut ties with the social network last month, and fellow Oculus Co-Founder Palmer Luckey, who left in March 2017.

Luckey, Iribe, Michael Antonov, and Nate Mitchell founded Oculus VR in 2012. Two years later, Facebook purchased the virtual reality firm for $2 billion.

What a ride! We made science fiction into reality and inspired a new industry in the process. Oculus was only possible because of such an extraordinary team and community. Thank you! Now, six years after we launched Oculus and Rift, I'm moving on to the next chapter!
— Brendan Iribe (@brendaniribe) October 22, 2018

In a Monday Facebook note announcing his resignation, Iribe said "Working alongside so many talented people at Oculus and Facebook has been the most transformative experience of my career. I'd like to sincerely thank everyone that's been a part of this amazing journey, especially Mark for believing in this team and the future of VR and AR."

Iribe went on to say that he plans to take his "first real break" in more than two decades.

"It's time to recharge, reflect and be creative," he wrote. "I'm excited for the next chapter."

In a statement to PCMag, Facebook said Mitchell, who has been leading the Rift/PC team with Iribe, will remain in his position. Hugo Barra has been leading the overall Oculus team for the past year and a half and longtime Facebook executive Andrew Bosworth oversees all augmented reality and VR work at Facebook.

Meanwhile, Iribe today commented on the state of VR, saying Oculus Rift and Touch deliver "the first step of true virtual presence" but there's room for improvement.

"Every part of VR and AR needs to improve, especially the hardware and core technology," Iribe wrote. "Although we're still far from delivering the magical smart glasses we all dream about, now they are nearly within our reach."

Luckey, meanwhile, exited Facebook in a cloud of controversy over his donation to a pro-Donald Trump organization called Nimble America, which created anti-Hillary Clinton memes. The donation reportedly put him at odds with liberal-leaning Silicon Valley.

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