Meta jumps after announcing paid subscriptions for Instagram, WhatsApp, Facebook, and AIMeta jumps after announcing paid subscriptions for Instagram, WhatsApp, Facebook, and AI

On Wednesday, Meta announced that it’s rolling out Meta One, a suite of paid versions of its most popular apps that offer extra features like profile customization, super reactions, and story insights. 

• Instagram Plus and Facebook Plus will cost $3.99 a month, while WhatsApp Plus is going for $2.99, according to TechCrunch.
• The company is also launching two AI subscription tiers — one for $7.99 and another for $19.99 for more advanced users. People can continue using the Meta AI chatbot for free, but will now run into limits.
• Together, these represent Meta’s first large-scale attempt to monetize everyday consumer use of its flagship apps through subscriptions rather than relying solely on advertising.

The stock finished up 3.7% on the day. 

The Takeaway

Meta’s head of product, Naomi Gleit, said in an Instagram post that the company has “more plans on the way for creators, businesses, and Meta AI power users.”

Meta has struggled to justify**** its enormous AI capital expenditure to investors since it lacks the recurring cloud revenue of its peers. New subscription revenue streams could help reassure investors that Meta has additional ways to monetize its AI investments beyond advertising.