When a Logo Doesn’t Risk It All: Meta’s Brand Is Designed for Unknown Worlds

When Mark ZuckerbergIt was announced last month that Facebook was changing its name, the company published a sleek animation online that showed logos of all its apps and products fusing together to form a shimmering vision of the future: a two-tone blue infinity symbol next to the word “Meta.”

TheNew symbol and name changes were approved Mr. Zuckerberg’s plans to refocus the Silicon ValleyHe sees a giant in what he calls the unification of digital worlds into one, the so-called metaverse. This immersive, interconnected online space is largely enabled by virtual and augmented reality. “The metaverse is the next frontier in connecting people,” he said in an announcement.

ToAccording to design experts, the latest example corporate efforts was to make a change in a scandal-plagued firm. Americato create brands that have less distinctive and less offensive. ItIt was also a reflection the growing difficulty for corporate identities in varying sizes and digital settings simultaneously. headsets to smartwatches — a challenge that is magnified for Meta as it tries to establish an identity for something that largely doesn’t exist yet.

“It checks a lot of boxes,” said Michael Evamy, the author of “Logo,” an anthology of corporate brands and logos. “It’s very simple. It’s very visible at all scales. It’s blue.” (BlueHe said that the color he mentioned is historically associated with safety, trustworthiness, and security. TheInfinity symbol is a symbol that is free from corners and edges. It can be considered non-threatening.

“But in a way it kind of looks exactly like you’d expect,” Mr. Evamy added. “Kind of underwhelming and risk-averse.”

UsersGlobal lawmakers are more concerned about the large reach of Facebook, whose products — including Instagram and WhatsApp — are used by more than 3.6 billion people every month. EvenAs FacebookIt grew to be one of the most valued companies in the world and spent the last few years moving from one embarrassing scandal after another. MostRecently, an ex-employee who became a whistleblower released a huge collection of internal documents. Mr. Zuckerberg FacebookProfit is routinely prioritized over the health and well-being of people.

Mr. ZuckerbergLast month, it was stated that the name change was a reflection on how much they have accomplished. Facebook had evolved. “Right now our brand is so tightly linked to one product that it can’t possibly represent everything we’re doing today, let alone in the future,” he said.

Facebook has long been associated with its lowercase “f” logo — a simple mark but one that became globally recognizable as Facebook grew. The company’s other apps also have bold colorful logos, which are staying as part of the rebranding.

Because Mr. Zuckerberg’s future vision rests on virtual reality, the company wanted a new logo that felt more dynamic and immersive. In March, the company began developing a logo by focusing “solely on exploring concepts with motion, dimensionality and perspective,” Zach Stubenvoll, Sam Halle and Marian Chiao, Members of the company’s internal design team. Send an email.

WhenV.R. People often use a V.R. controller to define the boundaries of their virtual world. Meta’s designers said the color loop in the new logo that eventually twists into the infinity symbol was inspired by those boundary lines.

The design community’s response to Facebook’s change has been largely muted.

“This symbol just doesn’t get you excited about the metaverse,” Mr. Evamy said. “The opportunity they’ve missed is to produce something really exciting and transformative in its own way.”

ManySimilar infinity-symbol logos are used by other brands, such as web development software. Microsoft, a model for Top FliteA wealth management firm, the rock band and golf balls Hoobastank. A service owned by MetaCalled BoomerangAlso, an infinity symbol is used.

“An infinity loop is not very unique,” said Jessica WalshFounder and creative director of the design studio, &Walsh. “However, unlike many brands, they’re in a privileged position where they don’t need to rely on their logo being distinct for it to be memorable.”

Paula ScherA partner at Pentagram, a design consulting firm whose clients include Bloomberg, Citibank TiffanyAccording to, she has seen a growing demand for corporate logos that are multidimensional and have motion. SeveralFor example, many years ago GoogleIt has added animation to its emblem. But Ms. ScherIt was pointed out that making a logo flexible could lead to it becoming less easily recognizable.

Rodrigo Corral, a bookcover designer who has also worked alongside the rapper Jay-Z and the Metropolitan MuseumOf ArtAnimation is often used in his designs for clients by, “But the logo has to stand on its own,” he cautioned. “It has to work without motion first.”

InIn recent years, brands have had the need to adapt their logos and identities for a wider range of digital platforms. As websites once solely viewed on desktop computers gave way to smartphone apps, logos had to function in smaller and smaller contexts — tiny squares and circles in social media feeds or miniature dots on smartwatches. VirtualReality offers another platform for brands to adapt, one that is inherently defined through motion and 3-D.

Mr. EvamyNot to be missed: MetaThis logo was a departure from an age when corporate branding was more expressive. “Big companies used to produce very brave, exciting, striking and stop-you-in-your-tracks symbols,” he said, pointing to the iconic stripes of IBM or the arrow hidden inside FedEx’s name.

ButFedEx was traditionally concerned with branding on the sides of delivery trucks and in TV commercials. MetaPeople live a lot in the digital age on many platforms.

ItThis is a relatively uncharted area. ThereThere is very little precedent for corporate logos being able to exist in 3-D within a virtual environment where they can be interacted and manipulated by users.

“Our Meta design system is designed to grow and change with the company and as the metaverse is created,” Meta’s design team said in the email. “We needed to future-proof the symbol.”