Meta has unveiled a forward-thinking AI strategy focused on substantial investments rather than immediate profits. During the Q2 earnings call, CEO Mark Zuckerberg outlined Meta’s vision, highlighting the significant computational resources required to support their AI endeavors.
Zuckerberg announced Meta’s plans for future computational clusters and data, particularly for their upcoming AI model, Llama 4. He emphasized that training Llama 4 will necessitate nearly ten times the computing power used for its predecessor, Llama 3, which operated on 16,000 GPUs. Zuckerberg aims for Llama 4 to be the industry’s most advanced model by next year.
Meta’s financial commitment to AI is evident, with projected capital expenditures for the year ranging from $37 to $40 billion, marking a $2 billion increase from previous estimates. Investors were informed of expected significant rises in capital expenditures next year as well.
Despite these hefty investments, Meta CFO Susan Li noted that the company does not anticipate revenue from generative AI this year. Li explained that Meta’s strategy involves building flexible AI infrastructure, allowing for capacity adjustments based on optimal use cases. The hardware used for AI model training can also be repurposed for inferencing and, with modifications, for ranking and recommendations.
Meta’s current AI initiatives, known as “Core AI,” are already enhancing user engagement on Facebook and Instagram. Zuckerberg highlighted a new unified video recommendation tool for Facebook, which has significantly boosted engagement on Facebook Reels.
Looking ahead, Zuckerberg envisions AI revolutionizing Meta’s advertising business. He predicts that in the near future, AI will manage ad copy creation and personalization, enabling advertisers to set business objectives and budgets, with Meta’s AI handling the rest.
While Meta’s AI investments are substantial, the company remains financially robust. Q2 results showed $39 billion in revenue and $13.5 billion in net income, reflecting year-over-year increases of $7 billion and $5.7 billion, respectively. Meta’s user base continues to grow, with over 3.2 billion daily users across its apps, and its Twitter competitor, Threads, nearing 200 million monthly active users.
As Meta navigates the AI landscape, its strategy emphasizes long-term technological advancement and infrastructure development over immediate financial returns. This approach ensures that Meta is not just building for today, but for a future where AI plays a pivotal role in its operations and offerings.
