Meta Hyperscape Update Turns Private Room Scans Into Shared VR Spaces

Meta adds shared Hyperscape rooms, letting users invite friends into photoreal VR scans of real spaces with phone access, boosting social VR while raising privacy concerns

It's a major leap in Meta's push to make virtual reality feel personal, social, and emotionally grounded. With a new update to Meta Hyperscape, the company is adding shared rooms that let Quest users invite friends into photorealistic scans of real-world environments - including support for those joining through a smartphone. What was once a quiet, solitary feature is now becoming a shared digital experience, though it brings new privacy concerns along the way.

From Solo Scans to Social VR Rooms

Hyperscape has been one of Meta's most impressive demonstrations of spatial computing. Using a Quest 3 or Quest 3S, users can scan any room by walking around while the headset records textures and depth. Meta converts this data into a remarkably accurate virtual replica, often so realistic that first-time users pause in disbelief. Despite the immersive visuals, the experience used to be deeply solitary: you could explore your digital living room, but no one could join you.

That changes with the Meta Hyperscape update, which will turn a captured room into an unlisted Horizon world that's accessible via a generated link for as many as eight people to join-converting a personal scan into a space for conversations, reunions, or even remote celebrations. This brings to light the fact that digital twins are less about accuracy and more about the social links that they can create.

Phone access broadens reach

One of the most transformative additions in the Meta Hyperscape update is support for phone-based entry through the Horizon mobile app. This will ensure that participation isn't only for those who have VR headsets. Instead of locking the experience behind hardware requirements, Meta opens the door for anyone with a smartphone to join in. A sibling in another city, or a friend on their commute, can now take a walk through a scanned home right from their phone.

This inclusivity might make Hyperscape the most accessible social VR feature Meta's released to date. The emotional resonance is enormous, too: walking through a childhood home, an old apartment shared with friends, or the living room of a grandparent creates a certain kind of connectivity hard to achieve in a generic VR hangout.

Technical Changes Increase Realism

The Meta Hyperscape update also shifts much of the rendering load onto the headset itself, reducing reliance on cloud streaming. This should create faster, smoother loads with fewer awkward moments where a room suddenly snaps into focus. Audio support is rolling out too, which dramatically enhances immersion. A silent environment, no matter how realistic, feels empty. Add ambient sound and voice, and the room again becomes a living space.

Privacy Concerns Dominate User Questions

Yet, these features come with very serious privacy implications. In photorealistic scans, sensitive information might be revealed, including personal photos, documents, clutter, and exact layouts. While Meta says that users can reset the links and that shared rooms will be restricted to adults, it raises many questions: Can guests forward the link? How long are the scans stored? How easy is access revocation? While Meta encourages sharing only with people you trust, the concerns it raises make it obvious that a digital twin is more than just data — it’s the blueprint of someone's real life.