Reality Labs, a division of Meta Platforms, reported another series of losses for the fourth quarter of 2024. Despite the financial setbacks, company leadership expects 2025 to be pivotal for their metaverse and AI development.
Financial Results and Reality Labs Losses
Reality Labs reported Q4 2024 operating losses of $4.97 billion, while generating over $1 billion in revenue. Full-year revenue increased by 13% to $2.15 billion, although losses rose 10% to $17.73 billion. Since 2020, Reality Labs has accrued more than $60 billion in losses.
Meta's Metaverse and AI Initiatives
Mark Zuckerberg stated that 2025 will be significant for the metaverse, highlighting the steady growth of users for their augmented reality hardware. He also announced plans to invest $60-65 billion in AI strategy and build a 2-gigawatt data center covering a significant part of Manhattan. Expectedly, new AI assistants will reach over a billion users.
Market Reaction and Future Outlook
Q4 2024 showed Meta’s revenue growth of 21% to $48.4 billion, outpacing analyst expectations. Full-year revenue jumped 22% to $164.5 billion. Meta's shares rose 5% after Zuckerberg's announcements, later closing 2.3% up in aftermarket trading. Meta has seen over a 15% rise in stock value this year.
Despite substantial financial losses of Reality Labs, Meta's leadership is confident in the potential of their metaverse and AI development strategy, anticipating significant results in 2025.
