Mark Zuckerberg apologizes after critics slam his 'magical' video of Puerto Rico devastation

Mark Zuckerberg had a major lapse of judgement when he decided to use footage of hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico as part of a demonstration to show off Facebook’s 360-degree virtual reality technology.

Zuckerberg issued an apology for the demonstration he and other FB staffers pulled off on Tuesday.

The technology is, no doubt, cool — using VR to drop your friends into your home, your vacation … or maybe even your decimated homeland … in the case of millions of Puerto Ricans.

Zuckerberg was called a "heartless billionaire" and accused of "exploiting disaster" by online users after live-streaming a virtual reality (VR) cartoon avatar of himself in hurricane-hit Puerto Rico. In his apology, Zuckerberg said it was designed to "raise awareness" of what's happening around the world and spotlight Facebook's work with the Red Cross.

Last month, Puerto Rico was badly hit by Hurricane Maria. Electricity is almost non-existent and millions of citizens are struggling without basic necessities, including water.

Zuckerberg demonstrated Facebook Spaces on Monday, a product that allows users to create a 3-D virtual avatar of themselves to use with an Oculus Rift VR headset. It lets people to communicate with each other by putting their avatars in the same virtual space.

ICYMI, here is the video: