The social media behemoth Meta Platforms reports that its earnings have skyrocketed and that it is investing billions of dollars more in AI initiatives.
The company, which owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, reports that its revenue for the three months ending in June increased by 22% to $47.5 billion (£35.86 billion) compared to the same period last year, while its earnings increased by 36% to $18.3 billion.
As the firm invests in achieving CEO Mark Zuckerberg's AI goals, costs are also increasing at the same time, going up 12% to $27 billion, and this trend is predicted to continue.
According to Meta, its largest expenditures will be the cost of constructing infrastructure, such as servers and data centers, and employee compensation packages.
In an Instagram video, Zuckerberg detailed his intentions to create an "AI Superintelligence" that transcends "human intelligence to solve complex problems" before Meta's earnings report on Wednesday.
Additionally, he stated that Meta will develop a "personal superintelligence" that employs cutting-edge AI for routine chores like assisting users in remembering wedding anniversaries, booking reservations, or placing present orders.
According to Mike Proulx of the research and consultancy firm Forrester, Meta is trying to "future-proof itself as a growth company" in case its present products don't work out.
Since the release of the Llama 4 family of large language models (LLMs) disappointed some customers and investors, Meta has been working to catch up with competitors in the artificial intelligence space, such as OpenAI and Google.
To entice elite AI personnel away from rivals, it has offered $100 million compensation packages.
Additionally, Meta invested over $14 billion in ScaleAI, an artificial intelligence company, and hired Alexandr Wang, the company's CEO, to lead its initiatives.
Zuckerberg's approach has been to leverage Meta's main business strengths to help finance its AI initiatives.
According to him, 3.4 billion people use at least one Meta app daily worldwide.
AI has also been used by Meta to boost its advertising division.
However, some analysts are concerned about the cost of creating superintelligence.
According to Minda Smiley of market research firm Emarketer, "AI-driven investments into Meta's advertising business continue to pay off, bolstering its revenue as the company pours billions of dollars into AI ambitions like superintelligence."
"However, investors who are keen to see returns will continue to question and scrutinize Meta's excessive expenditure on its AI visions," she continued.
Following its earnings report, Meta's shares surged by almost 10% during extended trading in New York.
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