Another, even less flattering nautical reference that comes to mind here is Moby Dick. The metaverse could be Zuckerberg’s White Whale, and Meta his Pequod, the ship that (spoiler alert) goes down in the end, taking with it all hands but one.

Ahab was able to motivate his crew by nailing a gold doubloon to the mast. Meta shareholders may need a bit more inducement. This month’s sell-off, the worst in its history, was due partly to investors baulking at how much money Zuckerberg is throwing at his own obsession.

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Of course, the main motivation for the sell-off was the fact that Facebook Meta’s primary revenue source, digital advertising, isn’t growing the way it once was. Voyages of discovery take a long time, and Wall Street memories are short. Silicon Valley history is rife with new ideas, such as the iPad, that are mocked and then accepted.

Zuckerberg’s Metamates might have plenty of reason to stay on board for a while. But maybe they should start paying closer attention to those lifeboat drills.