Tech Billionaires’ Craziest Inventions—And Which Ones Might Actually Save the World (2 of 6)

Jeff Bezos’s orbital “space greenhouse” plan

Bezos’s long-term Blue Origin vision borrows heavily from physicist Gerard O’Neill: giant rotating space habitats with artificial gravity, parks, farms, and, of course, greenhouses in orbit. In public talks, he’s described these as self-sustaining colonies where heavy industry and manufacturing could move off-world, leaving Earth mainly for people and light industry.

He has repeatedly argued that all heavy, polluting industry should ultimately be done in space to keep Earth, this beautiful gem of a planet, clean. Blue Origin isn’t building full O’Neill cylinders yet; for now, it’s focused on orbital rockets and lunar infrastructure, but those concepts are the stated endgame.

Mark Zuckerberg’s VR metaverse revamp

In 2021, Mark Zuckerberg rebranded Facebook as Meta, declaring its future as the “metaverse,” a move that initially confused many. Meta was positioned as an immersive, 3D social internet you access mainly through VR and AR headsets. The Reality Labs division that builds this hardware and software has burned astonishing amounts of cash. By the end of 2024, it had racked up about $69 billion in cumulative losses, with relatively modest revenue. Despite facing criticism, Meta persists in investing billions in VR headsets, AR glasses, and its Horizon Worlds platform, with Zuckerberg consistently asserting that 2025 will mark a significant shift in the metaverse experience and user engagement.