Internet Reacts To Mark Zuckerberg's 'Cringe' New Name For Meta Employees

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg's new name for his employees has left the internet in stitches.

Zuckerberg's decision to change the name of the world's biggest social media company from Facebook to Meta sparked a series of mixed responses from users.

However, the internet has been left even more bamboozled and amused by Zuckerberg's latest announcement to his employees about the company's 'updated [...] values that guide our work', and how Meta is 'different from other companies'.

Noting how the change in name acts as a 'flag in the ground with Meta as our new name and vision for the future', Zuckerberg's post to Facebook emphasised how 'important' he thinks it is to be 'intentional about how we work and what values we emphasize'.

He stated, 'We wrote our current company values back in 2007. They have been remarkably durable, but a lot has changed during this time. We are now a distributed company. We have a global community and wide reaching impact. And we're now a metaverse company, building the future of social connection.

'Now is the right time to update our values and our cultural operating system. I've always believed that in order for values to be useful, they need to be ideas that good companies can reasonably disagree with or emphasize differently. By working at Meta, we commit to applying these values to our work every day. I think these values capture how we must act as a company to bring our vision to life.'

The CEO reflected on the company's ability to 'build and learn faster than anyone else', 'focus on [the] long-term impact', 'build awesome things' and 'inspire people as well'.

He also said that the company's 'Live in the Future guides' to help 'people feel present together no matter where they are'.

Finally, Zuckerberg commented on the culture of working for Meta, noting the importance of being 'direct' and 'respect[ing] your colleagues', branding employees as 'Metamates'.

'Meta, Metamates, Me is about being good stewards of our company and mission. It's about the sense of responsibility we have for our collective success and to each other as teammates. It's about taking care of our company and each other,' he said.

However, despite the sentiment, internet users were left highly entertained by Zuckerberg's choice of nickname, taking to Twitter to poke fun at the idea of 'Metamates'. One said, 'There is no I in Metamates.'

Another wrote, '- last value, and I am not making this up: “Meta, metamates, me". A slide shows this text in bold all caps next to Zuck talking. I am told Zuck said this without laughing and explained it had to do with a story about ships and shipmates.'

A third commented, 'Spare a thought for Aussie employees, having to always say “mate” after “metamates".'

Fun fact: Metamates was coined by none other than Douglas Hofstadter himself after an employee cold emailed him for ideas after our rebrand. I love it!

Also the saying is a reference to a Naval phrase which Instagram has used for a while "Ship, Shipmates, Self"

— Boz (@boztank) February 15, 2022

Metamates sounds like what they would call a team of dancers that go to promote this at senior golf tournaments and retirement investment fairs. https://t.co/3WMcx5ppHH pic.twitter.com/CpDnJBggLd

— Schooley (@Rschooley) February 15, 2022

I’m not saying I would do this, but if I were to start an incel dating site, I’d consider calling it “Metamates”

— Eden Marie (@neonepiphany) February 16, 2022

"Metamates" sounds like a really douchey dating app

— Laura Bassett (@LEBassett) February 15, 2022

I really want metamates to be pronounced the Spanish way, like tamale or tomates. Me ta mates!

However, that could lead to unintended consequences….

(image shows a Google translate screenshot which reveals that the phrase above can be translated as “KILL ME” in Spanish.)
😳 pic.twitter.com/MQqbJUxkkk

— Meg Pickard (@megpickard) February 15, 2022

Thinking of starting a rumour that Metamates was a Greek philosopher who advocated living in a barrel of dung. Who's with me? https://t.co/wrFOCVVRmt

— David Tyler (@DavidTylerPozz) February 16, 2022

That feeling when you gift yourself Ten Thousand Metamates. pic.twitter.com/ym2gc6SCDs

— Anton "Doors & Corners" Hand (@AntonHand) February 16, 2022

Can any MetaMates let me know when the next gangbang is? pic.twitter.com/NJkccZ53CY

— Vince Vintage (@_vincevintage) February 16, 2022

Zuckerberg concluded the post, 'At the end of the day, values aren't what you write on a website but what we hold each other accountable for every day. I encourage you to reflect on these values and what they mean to you as we start working on this next chapter for our company.'

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