Artificial intelligence spending has entered a new phase.
Facebook and Instagram parent Meta said Wednesday it will invest more than US$9.1 billion to build its first artificial intelligence data center in Canada and its largest outside the United States.
Meta's technology chief shared details on the data leak from its Model Capability Initiative. Andrew Bosworth said an internal researcher had put the data "in a place it wasn't supposed to go.
Instagram profiles default to letting users share and modify their content with Meta's new AI model. The feature allows users to download your posts, including your profile picture, to "reuse" them.
Meta is building its first big Canadian data center in the province of Alberta. The 1 gigawatt facility will cost Meta about $9 billion over two to three years, and represents an attractive spot for development due to energy availability and friendly regulations.
Meta's Threads says it has 500 million monthly active users. A lot of those people are cross-posting from Facebook or Instagram.
Meta's next earnings report on July 29 will allow management to address how much it plans to spend on AI infrastructure in the second half of the year and whether its fledgling cloud computing business has any paying customers yet. Tesla will also face its own test on July 22, when the carmaker's latest earnings will be published.
Meta Platforms' Muse Image brings AI image creation to Meta AI, Instagram and WhatsApp, supporting engagement and advertiser tools across its apps.
Meta's AI glasses have a growing reputation as a creepy technology. The company hopes to change that opinion by announcing an update that will disable the camera if the LED light that indicates the glasses are recording has been tampered with.
Meta Platforms remains a compelling 'Buy' as capex is expected to peak in 2026, with normalization likely in 2027. META's core ads business is robust, with 19% y/y impression growth and a 27% y/y increase in average revenue per daily active person. Operating margin stands at 41%, and Q1 free cash flow reached $12.4 billion despite heavy capex, supporting long-term value.
Whether you're a value, growth, or momentum investor, finding strong stocks becomes easier with the Zacks Style Scores, a top feature of the Zacks Premium research service.
Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META | META Price Prediction) has been through the wringer.