After announcing a dedicated application, Facebook’s parent company is now mulling over the introduction of a paid subscription tier for the Meta AI, to rival OpenAI, Google, and Microsoft. During the Q1 earning call, CEO Mark Zuckerberg stated that Meta is now considering a premium service for people who want to unlock more computing or additional functionality amid its rapidly expanding AI ecosystem.
This comes after Meta introduced a standalone AI application for users globally that allows them to chat with AI, make pictures in the app, and position themselves against ChatGPT, Gemini, and Copilot. Till now, the Meta AI platform was available via Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, and WhatsApp. Interestingly, the tech giant claimed that the chatbot has over 1 billion users.
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Mark Zuckerberg also stated that while monetisation is on the roadmap, the major focus still remains on the growing user base and engagement. “I expect that we’re going to be largely focused on scaling and deepening engagement for at least the next year before we’ll really be ready to start building out the business,” he said as quoted by The Verge.
The report stated that Meta is already laying the groundwork for potential monetization strategies, including a premium tier and even advertising or product recommendations integrated into the AI experience. However, the premiums, plans, and exact strategy behind it remain unknown at the time of writing this article.
This comes after Meta increased its investment in artificial intelligence. As per the reports, the company has reported $42 billion in revenue in recent months and has now raised its AI investment target to as much as $72 billion.
It is fair to assume that if Meta introduces a premium tier plan, the company will offer enhanced and new AI capabilities, much like its competitors. It remains to be seen when Meta will launch the new tiers and with what features.