Victoria Song

Ty! Also you're right. For this piece, I wanted to center the community and their voices. I do think The Verge (not just me) will be uh, looking into the business side of VR going forward.

The thing I loved about reporting this story, and what made me cry, was hearing how this VR game helped people through the darkest times in their lives by finding friends and health. There's so much heart in ordinary people sticking up for their people, even it's a relatively "small" thing.

I'm sick of community as marketing. Community is often a lifeline for marginalized people and non-marginalized people alike. If you build a community, you are responsible to them but I guess I'm old fashioned like that.

quote text: A passionate group of women rediscovered fitness in VR. They’re furious with Mark Zuckerberg for killing their community. -- DeeDee Henry, an avid Supernatural athlete since 2020 Photo: a woman in a VR headset

A passionate group of women rediscovered fitness in VR. They’re furious with Mark Zuckerberg for killing their community.

Read more from @vicmsong.bsky.social: www.theverge.com/tech/871250/...

Arguably, Supernatural was an example of how technology can serve and connect people. It reached people you wouldn't expect to log in DAILY to a VR headset.

It's like saying small, dedicated communities aren't enough if they're not raking it in at scale. That makes me so sad.

Another side thought about this whole thing.

Meta is trying to court athletes with its Oakley-branded glasses. It's hard to see that when I just talked to so many marginalized athletes who loved and found community in a Meta product... and they were abandoned because they weren't profitable enough.

This was a great TWIT for trying times

I thought DeeDee was badass and then I saw her photos and was like “oh she top tier badass!!!” (All of Team Sunshine is)

I used this app and other VR apps during covid and after when I had a back injury that barely allowed me to walk. Supernatural was incredibly accessible with a support community.

The median age/demo for Supernatural is 50 year old women, a group oft ignored in games. This really is a loss

Ty!!!

If you like this kind of community reporting and holding Big Tech accountable to the public, please consider subscribing to our site.

Good reporting takes time and effort 😌🤪

Supernatural was a breakout VR fitness sensation — meet the women furious with Mark Zuckerberg for killing it ‘I despise Meta.’

Here’s a story I’ve been working on for a few weeks.

Over 50 Supernatural fans reached out to share how a VR fitness game changed their lives — and they had choice words about how Mark Zuckerberg and Meta killed the one thing that brought them together.

(Gift link)

tinyurl.com/4yaftn2s

This Week in Tech: In My Head I Have 3 Buckets | TWiT.TV What happens when AI bots get their own social network, Silicon Valley execs cozy up to power, and Apple takes a cut from creators? This week’s panel calls out the bold

New Podcast Episode:
This Week in Tech: In My Head I Have 3 Buckets
Moltbook Becomes a Surreal AI Agent Social Network
with @leolaporte.me, @grivlin.bsky.social, @devindra.bsky.social, @vicmsong.bsky.social

Reupping this one just because I'm still thinking about the concepts I wrote about in it.

(And because I'm pretty proud of this one.)

And we're live and I'm starting to answer questions now!

The lonely promise of cute robots Mirumi is adorably boring, unless you’re my cat.

In addition to an AMA later today, I have this week's Optimizer for you now about cute robots that promise to boost mental wellbeing... by being cute.

Come for the kawaii, stay for the thoughts on east vs west robot culture, dementia, and a musical about singing, dying robots.

tinyurl.com/mrybapda

I wear lots of technology for a living, ask me anything I’ll be answering subscriber questions starting at 11 AM PT / 2PM ET.

It’s time for another subscriber-exclusive AMA, and this time, @vicmsong.bsky.social will be your host. If you have any burning questions about wearable gadgets, AI companions, or the wildest wellness tech, drop a question in the comments of this article; answers will start coming in at 2PM ET.

I wear lots of technology for a living, ask me anything I’ll be answering subscriber questions starting at 11 AM PT / 2PM ET.

Hello, your friendly neighborhood senior reviewer is doing a Verge subscriber-only AMA later today at 11AM PT / 2PM ET. Come ask any burning questions you have about wearables / health tech / Optimizer. Or, come hang / tell me what you want to see me cover.

www.theverge.com/column/87039...

Preach girl, preach. As always, an incredibly insightful and important read from @miasato.bsky.social

YouTube video by Theme Guy Curb Your Enthusiasm Theme

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ag1o...

YouTube video by Theme Guy Curb Your Enthusiasm Theme

Whenever my international friends ask me about America I just send them this.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ag1o...

Please help our laid-off Vox Media colleagues, including those from The Verge. Yours truly will be helping maintain transparency on the fund and disbursement!

TikTok informed me that the children are now saying “lowkenuinely” to mean “i really mean it but keep it low key” and “lowkentologicalowstate” to mean absolutely locked in.

I lowkenuinely choose to quit consciousness rn.

Winter is going to bed at 6PM

Influencers are pushing suspicious peptides. How much are you willing to risk? Testing my mystery bottle of “GLP-3” is harder than I thought.

This week on Optimizer: my search into the contents of a dubious vial of "GLP-3" that I obtained off the gray market. Turns out, getting this tested is harder than I thought.

This is a gift link but if you want to follow along, please consider subscribing to Optimizer!

tinyurl.com/39z3shu3

These closets have floor to ceiling windows

I’ve learned nothing about hockey from Heated Rivalry but I have learned that these fictional closeted hockey gays afraid of being outed are totally fine doing filthy things to each other in front of giant windows in broad daylight.

There has to be a better way to email than :checks notes:

Spend 5,000 years setting up filters and all those clean up inbox apps that just ask you to sort through you email in a different way.

Until then, I just archived 100+ unread emails from CES.

Caught up on If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You, The Housemaid, and Die My Love.

Think this should be mandatory viewing for men marrying women before marriage and kids.

Devastated to lose @barb.bsky.social and @adashtra.bsky.social. It's a small relief that our collective efforts bargaining a fair contract will give our cherished colleagues a competitive severance package.

I'm proud to be part of the Union's diversity committee, which isn't going anywhere.