Meta has spun off the Supernatural VR fitness application following its acquisition for $400 million.

      Meta is spinning off Supernatural, the VR fitness app it acquired for an estimated $400 million in 2023 following an antitrust battle with the FTC, into a new independent company named Supernatural Health. The new company, which will be run by the original founders, plans to relaunch this autumn with increased subscription prices.

      In 2023, Meta engaged in an eight-month legal dispute with the Federal Trade Commission to gain approval for its acquisition of Within, the studio that developed Supernatural. Mark Zuckerberg even provided testimony in court to facilitate the deal's closure.

      Now, just under three years later, Meta is divesting the app. On June 3, the company revealed that Supernatural would become Supernatural Health, with the app's original founders at the helm. A revamped version of the app is set to debut this autumn on the Meta Quest platform, while Meta's version will be discontinued on December 3.

      This is a rare instance where a significant tech acquisition results in a product continuing to exist, despite the bizarre circumstances surrounding its journey.

      From court victory to content stagnation

      The FTC attempted to prevent Meta's acquisition of Within in July 2022, claiming that the merger would be detrimental to competition in the emerging VR fitness sector. However, a federal judge ruled in favor of Meta, allowing the acquisition to finalize in February 2023.

      For a period, Supernatural flourished under Meta, offering engaging workouts like beat-matching boxing and bat-swinging in immersive virtual environments. It cultivated a loyal community, especially among older adults and individuals with mobility issues, who discovered a more playful approach to exercise through VR.

      However, in January 2026, Meta executed significant layoffs, cutting about 1,500 jobs from Reality Labs, amounting to roughly 10% of the division's workforce. It also closed three VR game studios—Twisted Pixel, Sanzaru Games, and Armature Studio. Supernatural was relegated to maintenance mode, with no new workouts, songs, or features, and its coaches were released.

      These reductions were part of a larger strategic shift from VR towards AI-based wearables. By May, Meta had eliminated another 8,000 jobs across the company, channeling billions into AI development. Reality Labs, which has seen total operating losses of about $90 billion since its inception, was no longer central to Zuckerberg's ambitions.

      The community responds

      Supernatural's users expressed their dissatisfaction vocally. A Change.org petition urged Meta to either continue investing in the app or allow the team to become an independent entity supported by subscription revenue. Users in the app's Facebook groups shared personal stories of how the platform helped with weight loss, pain management, and mental health improvement.

      “We all felt like it was purchased to kill,” one user remarked in the public Supernatural Facebook group after the spinoff was announced. “I am such a sap. Why am I tearing up?”

      This situation reflects a common trend where large tech companies acquire products, strip them for resources or neglect them, then ultimately shut them down—a pattern so prevalent that dedicated websites exist to track such failures. What sets Supernatural apart is that Meta opted to allow it to operate independently rather than simply shutting it down.

      What changes with Supernatural Health

      The new company asserts it will rehire the original coaches and preserve the app's fundamental identity. “Same coaches, same DNA, same obsession with making fitness feel like the best part of your day,” states the Supernatural Health website.

      However, subscription prices will increase. The annual subscription will jump from $100 to $180, and the monthly fee will rise from $10 to $20, as reported by Engadget. It remains uncertain whether this price hike reflects the actual costs of running the service without Meta's support or the premium associated with independence.

      It is also unclear if Supernatural Health will be able to expand beyond the Meta Quest platform or how the smaller team will manage content production. While the existing library of over 3,000 workouts will transition to the new entity, the true challenge will be whether the indie studio can meet the music licensing and production demands that a $400 million Meta acquisition once supported.

      An expensive lesson in acquisition dynamics

      This situation serves as a case study illustrating how major tech acquisitions can falter—not due to the product itself but because of shifting priorities from the acquiring company. Meta recently had to retract its $2 billion purchase of AI startup Manus after regulators in China blocked the deal, leading to a total write-off. Similarly, issues arose with the GIPHY acquisition, culminating in a mandated sell-off by UK regulators.

      Supernatural embodies a gentler version of this narrative. Meta fought to acquire it, achieved that goal, and then decided it no longer desired what it had attained.

      For users who integrated the app into their daily lives, the corporate decision-making is secondary to their regained access to the service, despite the nearly doubled cost. Whether Supernatural Health can succeed