Brendan Iribe, the co-founder of Facebook-owned Oculus, is leaving the virtual reality company.
‘This will be the first real break I’ve taken in over 20 years. It’s time to recharge, reflect and be creative. I’m excited for the next chapter,’ Iribe wrote in a Facebook post on Monday announcing his departure.
Iribe, who co-founded the virtual reality startup in 2012, is among a string of executives and co-founders to leave Facebook as the company grapples with privacy and security concerns. The departures underscore how companies purchased by the social media giant have come under tighter control by Facebook CEO and co-founder Mark Zuckerberg.
In September, Instagram co-founders Kevin Systrom and Mike Kreiger announced they were leaving the Facebook-owned photo sharing app. WhatsApp co-founders Brian Acton and Jan Koum have also left the tech firm and last year, Oculus co-founder Palmer Luckey, is no longer with Facebook either.
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The virtual reality company has also been going through a shuffle in leadership. In 2016, Iribe stepped down as the CEO of Oculus to lead group that focuses on virtual reality powered by personal computers. Facebook then hired Hugo Barra from Xiaomi to lead the company’s virtual reality efforts.
Facebook, which envisions a future where its users will be able to experience each moments like birthdays and child’s first walk as if they’re there in person, purchased Oculus for $2 billion in 2014.
