Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, once considered a drastic measure to boost Facebook's cultural relevance: deleting every user's friends list. This shocking revelation emerged on Monday during the first day of the US government's antitrust trial against Meta. In a 2022 message to Meta employees, Zuckerberg proposed "wiping everyone's graphs and having them start again" as a potential solution to Facebook's declining significance in the social networking space.

The idea behind this radical strategy was to encourage users to reconnect with the social network as they rebuilt their social connections. However, the plan was met with resistance from other Meta executives, including Tom Alison, the head of Facebook. Ultimately, the strategy was never implemented, but it sheds light on Zuckerberg's willingness to take bold steps to revitalize the platform.

This is not the only unconventional strategy Zuckerberg has considered. The trial evidence also revealed that he explored shifting Facebook from a friends-based model to a follower-based model, similar to Twitter or Instagram. This idea, too, was ultimately abandoned. Despite these failed experiments, Facebook has recently refocused on connecting friends, revamping its Friends tab to centralize friend requests and showcase friends' content, including posts, reels, stories, and birthdays.

Zuckerberg's efforts to revamp Facebook are driven by his ambition to make the platform more culturally influential. During Meta's Q4 2024 earnings call, he told investors that he aims to return Facebook to its original purpose, citing opportunities to make the platform "way more culturally influential than it is today." This nostalgia for Facebook's early days is evident in the revamped Friends tab, which is designed to recreate the social network's original appeal.

The antitrust trial against Meta has brought to light the company's internal struggles to adapt to a rapidly changing social media landscape. As the trial continues, it remains to be seen how these revelations will impact Meta's future and the broader tech industry. One thing is clear, however: Mark Zuckerberg is willing to take risks to ensure Facebook remains relevant in an increasingly competitive market.

The implications of Zuckerberg's proposed strategy extend beyond Meta's walls. The incident raises questions about the role of social media platforms in shaping online interactions and the consequences of drastic changes to these platforms. As social media continues to evolve, users and regulators alike will be watching closely to see how companies like Meta balance innovation with user experience and responsibility.