Meta Platforms(META.US), the parent company of Facebook, remains steadfast in its commitment to extensive AI investment. 

The company reported its Q3 2024 financial results.

• Revenue of US$40.589 billion, a 19% increase year-over-year, exceeding analysts' expectations of US$40.3 billion. 
• Net income rose by 35% to US$15.688 billion, the smallest annual increase since Q2 2023, while diluted earnings per share jumped 37% to US$6.03, surpassing the forecasted US$5.25. 

Meta's daily active users (DAUs) for Q3 were 3.29 billion, a 5% increase year-over-year but below analysts' expectation of 3.31 billion. Capital expenditures for Q3 amounted to US$9.2 billion.

Looking ahead, Meta projects its FY 2024 total revenue to range between US$45 billion and US$48 billion, with a midpoint of US$46.5 billion, higher than the market expectation of US$46.3 billion. Total expenditures for the fiscal year are expected to range from US$96 billion to US$98 billion, slightly lower than the previous forecast of US$96 billion to US$99 billion. Capital expenditures for the year are projected between US$38 billion and US$40 billion, an increase from the prior forecast of US$37 billion to US$40 billion. Moreover, capital expenditure is anticipated to see significant growth in 2025.

Meta's CEO Mark Zuckerberg expressed optimism during an earnings call, attributing the company's solid quarterly performance to advancements in AI across applications and businesses. He highlighted the strong growth momentum of Meta AI, the Llama large model, and AI-driven smart glasses.

Zuckerberg emphasized the necessity of substantial infrastructure support for AI investment, anticipating continued significant investment in the field.

Segment Performance:

• - Advertising: The primary revenue source from social media platforms generated US$39.885 billion in Q3, accounting for over 98% of total revenue. Zuckerberg noted that over one million advertisers have utilized Meta's generative AI ad tools, contributing to an 8% increase in Facebook user engagement and a 6% rise in Instagram user engagement.
• - Family of Apps (FoA): Revenue reached US$40.319 billion, up 19% year-over-year. 
• - Reality Labs: Responsible for AR and VR businesses, reported Q3 revenue of US$270 million, a 29% year-over-year increase, but continued to post significant losses of US$4.428 billion, higher than last year’s US$3.742 billion. Since 2020, Reality Labs’ operational losses have exceeded US$58 billion.

Meta's CFO Susan Li pointed out during the earnings call that Asia-Pacific revenue growth in Q3 slowed to 15% from 28% in Q2, affected by declining demand from Chinese advertisers. Concerns were raised about the impact of reduced digital ad spending by Chinese online retailers like Temu and Shein on Meta's overall revenue.

Meta's workforce increased by 9% year-over-year, totalling 72,404 employees as of September 30.

Zuckerberg highlighted that Meta's chatbot, Meta AI, now boasts over 500 million monthly active users, while Susan Li noted that despite being in its early stages, Meta AI is poised to become the most widely used AI assistant by year-end.

In September, Meta unveiled its latest MR headset, the Quest 3S, at the Connect 2024 developer conference, priced at US$299. It also introduced the Orion, touted as the most advanced AI glasses to date, with each unit costing approximately US$10,000 to produce.