Mark Zuckerberg, Meta's CEO, surprised investors by announcing a substantial increase in its AI spending.
The tech giant now expects to spend between $35 billion and $40 billion this year on building AI systems and infrastructure, a substantial increase from its earlier estimate of $30 billion to $37 billion.
Zuckerberg aims to make his company a leader in the hot field of AI.
Moreover, after the success of ChatGPT, an AI chatbot that can engage in human-like conversations, Zuckerberg shifted Meta's focus to incorporating AI across its apps and services.
Meanwhile, investors expressed concern over increased spending and warned of potential revenue growth slowdown.
Meta did report substantial revenue of $36.5 billion for the first three months of 2024, up 27% from a year earlier.
However, it was predicted that the current quarter revenue could come below as analysts estimates at $36.5 billion to $39 billion.
Last week, Meta launched a ChatGPT rival called the Meta AI assistant.
It added AI-powered tools for summarising text, analysing code, creating imagery, and tutoring maths across Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, and other platforms.
Zuckerberg said in an official statement, noting, "Tens of millions of people have already tried the Meta AI assistant since its launch."
He further added, "We should have confidence that if these AI products become widely used, they will become huge businesses over time."
