Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta, recently celebrated his 40th birthday, and besides the attention his extravagant yacht party garnered, there has been much discussion about his personal transformation. Various media outlets have all agreed that Zuckerberg has become “cool,” shedding his previous image as a rigid bookworm.
On May 14th, Zuckerberg invited numerous friends and family to celebrate his birthday on a luxurious yacht worth $300 million. Even Microsoft founder Bill Gates attended and took a photo with Zuckerberg in a room designed to resemble their college dorm.
Zuckerberg’s wife, Priscilla Chan, took a picture of him at the party that caught everyone’s attention. This photo revealed that Zuckerberg is no longer the nerdy person he used to be. He has completely transformed his appearance and is now undeniably a stylish and cool guy.
In the photo, Zuckerberg is sitting in a room designed to resemble his childhood bedroom, surrounded by vintage CRT monitors, trophies, thick programming books, and a frame with childhood photos. He has curly hair, a striking gold necklace around his neck, and is wearing a black t-shirt with a Gothic Latin quote from the ancient Roman politician Cato the Elder, which translates to “Carthage must be destroyed” – a slogan previously used by Facebook in its competition with Google. Former Meta employees recall seeing this quote posted throughout the company’s campus.
Interestingly, Zuckerberg is a passionate fan of ancient Rome. His three daughters are all named after Roman emperors. His eldest daughter, Maxima, is named after Magnus Maximus from the 4th century AD. His second daughter, August, is named after the first Roman emperor, Augustus. And his youngest daughter, Aurelia, born last year, is named after one of the Five Good Emperors of Rome, Aurelius.
It’s worth mentioning that Zuckerberg didn’t suddenly change his appearance. In April of this year, when he introduced Meta’s new AI model, Llama 3, he was already dressed similarly. At that time, internet users were amazed at how stylish Zuckerberg looked. However, this recent photo further emphasizes that Zuckerberg has truly transformed.
In the past, Zuckerberg was always seen with short hair, wearing simple t-shirts or suits, which led people to perceive him as the typical Silicon Valley nerd. In 2018, his stiff performance during a congressional hearing even led to people jokingly calling him a robot. He was never associated with words like “cool” or “stylish.”
“I’m not a cool person, and I never tried to make myself cool.” In fact, in 2014, Zuckerberg revealed that he didn’t care much about his appearance and preferred to focus his time on work. “If I spend my energy on stupid or boring things, it makes me feel like I haven’t done my job well.”
It’s difficult to pinpoint exactly when Zuckerberg started changing his image. When he traveled to Japan in February, he had a unique style, wearing smart glasses created in collaboration between Meta and Ray-Ban and a supposedly $1,000 wool coat. A year ago, when rumors circulated about a potential fight between Zuckerberg and Elon Musk, he posted pictures of his trained muscles on Instagram, which received over 2 million likes.
The CEO’s image is closely tied to the company itself. In 2021, Meta revealed that it spent nearly $27 million on security expenses for Zuckerberg, which shocked many as it far exceeded the spending of other tech company CEOs. The second-highest spender, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, only spent $4.3 million.
Meta’s explanation was that Zuckerberg had become synonymous with the company and was increasingly under intense scrutiny from the media and regulatory authorities. “Negative sentiments towards our company are often associated with, or even directly transferred to, Mr. Zuckerberg.”
Conversely, if Zuckerberg has a more relatable and fashionable image, it could potentially reduce hostility towards Meta or alleviate regulatory constraints.
Especially in recent years, Meta has faced increasing scrutiny. The US government has reopened investigations into the antitrust practices related to Meta’s acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp. Instagram has also faced accusations of child exploitation, and Zuckerberg publicly apologized for it during a hearing in January. The platform has also faced continuous criticism for hosting fake news.
“Personal style is a communication tool,” says fashion influencer and founder of the marketing platform LTK, Amber Venz Box. “Our appearance conveys a lot of information and can influence how people perceive us.”
It remains to be seen whether Zuckerberg’s personal style change will bring tangible benefits to Meta. But at the very least, compared to the past when he was mocked as a robot or a bookworm, his current image has garnered more positive feedback from internet users and the media.
Sources: TechCrunch, Business Insider, The Guardian
Additional reading: Why did Zuckerberg spend $770 million on security expenses last year, 15 times more than Bezos?
