Companies seeking to dominate the artificial intelligence (AI) market keep popping up like weeds. That includes many start-ups most haven't heard of and likely never will. These relatively small companies can be incredibly innovative, but it's hard -- and risky -- to try to profit from the AI boom by investing in privately held start-ups. Thankfully, there is no shortage of established corporations on the market that should benefit from the rise of AI.
One of the better bets in this field is none other than Facebook parent Meta Platforms (META +1.00%) with a market capitalization of $1 trillion. Let's find out why the stock could double in value by 2030.
Going all in on AI
Meta Platforms makes most of its money through advertising. However, the company is quickly implementing various AI initiatives to support and improve its existing primary revenue source while seeking to ramp up new ones.
Perhaps Meta's most important move in AI has been the release of its large language model (LLM), Llama, which it first launched last year. Llama is the backbone behind some of Meta Platforms' other AI-related offerings, including Meta AI, a virtual assistant.
The company's other products include Business AI, which assists companies with customer support and various other things.
NASDAQ: META
Key Data Points
These are the initiatives that don't make money yet, but Meta Platforms is planning to double down and spend more on building them up. And some of Meta's AI-related work is indeed helping it generate meaningful revenue.
For example, the company has used an AI-powered algorithm to drive recommendations for Reels (short-form videos) on Facebook and Instagram. The more viewers stumble onto videos they like, the longer they spend on this platform, and the more attractive it becomes to advertisers, which is an excellent illustration of the network effect.
Alhough Reels haven't been a thing for that long, Meta Platforms reports that they now make up more than 50% of the time spent on the Instagram app. Reels, longer-form videos, and live videos continue driving growth on Facebook, too, with the former being responsible for most of it, according to management.
In the first quarter, Meta Platforms' revenue increased by 27% year over year to $36.5 billion, while its earnings per share soared 114% to $4.71. Reels, whose growth has been driven partly thanks to Meta's AI work, is having somewhat of an impact on the company's strong results.
The road to $2 trillion
Meta Platforms' first-quarter results were solid, but investors were disappointed that the company would continue spending small fortunes on ramping up AI initiatives that don't generate much by way of profits. However, that's a somewhat myopic position, at least in my view. Here's what we know. The AI market will grow rapidly in the coming years. Meta Platforms is already a leader in the field, partly thanks to Llama, a leading LLM.
The tech giant is also implementing various AI measures within its business. Then there is Meta's superpower: its enormous ecosystem. It ended the first quarter with 3.24 billion daily active users across its websites and apps, an increase of 7% year over year. So, nearly half of the world's population uses at least one of the company's products every single day.
That makes Meta's ecosystem a magnet for businesses trying to attract customers. It also grants Meta the opportunity to test and find lucrative monetization opportunities. That, combined with its work in AI, looks likely to pay off handsome dividends down the road, literally, as Meta recently initiated a quarterly payout. That's before we mention the company's ongoing work on the metaverse, which could also be highly lucrative.
Meta Platforms boasts multiple opportunities and should continue to deliver solid financial results. Doubling in value in the next six years will take a compound annual growth rate of 12.2% -- that's well within the company's reach. Don't be surprised if Meta Platforms is a $2 trillion stock by the end of 2030.
