Meta's chief executive acknowledged that the company's artificial intelligence investments have not yet delivered results, despite plans to spend between $125 billion（約20兆円） and $145 billion（約23兆円） on AI infrastructure in 2026. The admission spooked investors, sending Meta's stock down 5% on the day, raising concerns that even dominant technology companies struggle to measure and realize returns from early-stage AI deployment.
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Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg told employees on July 2 that the company's AI bets "haven't come to fruition yet," even as the firm plans capital expenditures of $125 billion（約20兆円） to $145 billion（約23兆円） in 2026—88% higher than the previous year. The stock fell 5% that day, though it has gained 19% in July as of July 10.
Why it matters
Meta is gambling that AI will drive engagement and advertising revenue for its 3.56 billion daily active users across its apps, rather than selling AI capabilities to enterprise clients like its hyperscaler peers do. Investors' immediate skepticism reflects concerns that massive AI spending may not deliver returns—echoing their reaction to Meta's metaverse pivot in late 2021, which posted a cumulative operating loss of $77 billion（約12兆円） from 2021 through 2025.
What to watch
Zuckerberg said notable progress should materialize in the coming months. Meta had earlier laid off 8,000 employees (10% of its workforce) and moved 7,000 people into AI roles, with a goal to develop and implement AI agents throughout the organization—an objective that so far has failed to live up to expectations.
Meta has positioned itself as an outlier in the AI race: while other major cloud providers mainly sell AI and computing services to business clients, Meta is betting that artificial intelligence will transform its consumer-facing platform—boosting user engagement, ad revenue, and eventually delivering what Zuckerberg calls "personal superintelligence" to billions of users worldwide. To support this strategy, the company has already restructured its workforce, cutting 8,000 roles and redeploying 7,000 employees into AI positions.
However, Zuckerberg's July 2 admission that progress has stalled places Meta in a precarious position with investors. The company's track record on strategic pivots is mixed at best: its 2021 rebrand to Meta Platforms, anchored on the belief that the metaverse would replace mobile internet, has generated $77 billion（約12兆円） in cumulative operating losses from Reality Labs between 2021 and 2025, yet only now appears to be tapering. The immediate 5% stock drop when Zuckerberg spoke suggests that investors remain unconvinced that this cycle will differ, especially given the opacity of early AI outcomes—even dominant companies find it difficult to measure whether AI implementation is truly working. The coming months will be crucial: Zuckerberg has signaled that material progress should emerge, but the skepticism baked into the market reaction shows that announcements of future breakthroughs alone may not be enough to restore confidence.
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