一年前，马克·扎克伯格将Meta Platforms 2025年的资本支出目标大幅上调至650亿美元，比2024年高出50%，以此表明公司对人工智能的坚定投入。最终，Meta在一年内实际支出达到720亿美元，创下公司历史纪录。到2026年，支出计划再次激增，资本支出预计在1150亿至1350亿美元之间，最高可能相当于公司下一年预计总收入的57%。
这种激进投入符合41岁的扎克伯格一贯风格，其竞争本能曾带来显著回报，包括收购Instagram和WhatsApp，以及在2012年“转向移动端”的战略决策。但失败案例同样明显，从直播视频、互联网无人机到耗资数百亿美元却回报有限的元宇宙。正因如此，市场对当前AI支出反应分化：10月Meta首次暗示支出升级时，股价一度下跌14%；而本周公布新计划后，股价在盘后交易中上涨。
与此前不同的是，Meta并非孤军奋战。Alphabet旗下的Google、OpenAI以及微软也在同步扩大AI投资规模，微软本周发布的高额支出指引同样令投资者不安。然而，Meta背负着元宇宙投资的历史包袱，使得此次押注成败尤为关键。尽管过去一年在人才和基础设施上投入巨大，扎克伯格对即将发布的首批AI模型仍显克制，仅表示模型“会很好”，更强调的是发展轨迹的速度。
One year ago, Mark Zuckerberg raised Meta Platforms’ 2025 capital expenditure target to $65 billion, a 50% increase over 2024, signaling a serious commitment to artificial intelligence. The company ultimately spent $72 billion in a single year, a record for Meta. For 2026, spending is set to surge again, with capital expenditures projected at $115 billion to $135 billion, potentially equal to 57% of Meta’s estimated total revenue next year.
The aggressive push fits the pattern of the 41-year-old Zuckerberg, whose competitive instincts previously delivered major successes such as the acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp and the 2012 “pivot to mobile.” Yet there have also been clear misses, from live video and internet drones to the metaverse, which absorbed tens of billions of dollars with limited returns. As a result, investor reactions to the AI bet have been mixed: shares fell as much as 14% when higher spending was first signaled in October, but rose in extended trading after the latest announcement.
Unlike the metaverse push, Meta is not acting alone. Alphabet’s Google, OpenAI and Microsoft are all ramping up AI investment, with Microsoft issuing similarly lofty spending guidance this week. However, Meta’s lingering metaverse baggage raises the stakes. Despite heavy investment in talent and infrastructure, Zuckerberg sounded restrained about the company’s first new AI models, saying they would be “good” while emphasizing the speed of progress rather than immediate breakthroughs.