// startup autopsy
Vivaty
Virtual worlds inside Facebook — a bet the market never made.
marketfitSilent Shutdown
Quiet closure with no public announcement · Fatal mistake: Vivaty built its entire product on the assumption that mainstream users wanted 3D virtual social spaces, a thesis that proved wildly premature in 2007.
Key Events Timeline
FOUNDING
Vivaty founded in USA to create 3D virtual social spaces embedded in Facebook during the height of virtual world hype.
FUNDING
Raised $9.4M in seed/Series A funding to build out 3D virtual room technology for Facebook integration.
PRODUCT LAUNCH
Launched browser-based 3D virtual rooms on Facebook; initial buzz faded quickly as mainstream adoption failed to materialize.
LAYOFF
Vivaty reduced headcount significantly as user growth stalled and virtual world enthusiasm collapsed industry-wide.
SHUTDOWN
Vivaty shut down quietly after exhausting funding, unable to find acquirer or pivot path in a dead market.