Meta Platforms posted record revenue in the fourth quarter, aided by artificial-intelligence improvements to its ads business, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The Facebook and Instagram parent reported a 21% increase in sales and $20.8 billion in net income, both ahead of analyst expectations.
Meta estimated that revenue growth would slow in the January-to-March quarter, reaching 8% to 15%, a level that would represent the lowest increase in two years.
The company’s shares rose slightly in after-hours trading Wednesday, following a rally over the past week after it announced plans to increase spending on AI. Its capital-expenditure estimate for 2025 was roughly 70% over 2024 projections.
Meta operates a suite of AI products, including an open-source model called Llama that developers can use to create their own applications, and AI chatbots embedded in its apps. The company is also planning to create an AI engineer that will start contributing increasing amounts of code to its research and development projects. Meta Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg wants Meta AI to be the leading assistant in the world in 2025.
CNBC reported: Meta shares were up slightly in after-hours trading on Wednesday after the company reported fourth-quarter earnings that beat the top and the bottom.
Mark Zuckerberg said he expects 2025 to redefine the company’s relationships with governments.
“We now have a U.S. administration that is proud of our leading companies, prioritizes American technology winning and that will defend our values and interests abroad,” Zuckerberg told investor on a call. “I am optimistic about the progress and innovation that this can unlock.”
The company’s Meta AI chatbot surpassed 700 million monthly active users, finance chief Susan Li told analysts. That’s up from 600 million in December. Zuckerberg said he expects an AI chatbot will reach more than 1 billion users in 2025, and Meta AI is already used more than any other assistant, he said.
Variety reported: Meta turned in a big beat for the fourth quarter of 2024, with the parent of Facebook and Instagram reporting record quarterly revenue and net profit to close out the year.
The strong results come as the company is looking ahead to a massive increase in AI-fueled capital spending in 2025 — and as Meta CEO and chairman Mark Zuckerberg has been working to win the favor of President Trump, an erstwhile antagonist of the tech giant.
Meta did not provide revenue guidance for full year 2025, saying that “we expect the investments we are making in our core business this year will give us an opportunity to continue delivering strong revenue throughout 2025.”
In my opinion, it seems like Mark Zuckerberg has big ideas for what Meta will be like in 2025.