Meta Projects Generative AI Revenue to Soar to $1.4 Trillion by 2035 Amid Massive Investments

Meta predicts it will generate significant revenue from its generative AI products, forecasting between $2 billion and $3 billion by 2025 and up to $1.4 trillion by 2035, according to court documents unsealed on Wednesday. These figures come from a lawsuit filed by book authors who allege that Meta used their works without authorization to train its AI systems. The court filings do not specify the exact definition of "generative AI products" that Meta uses, but it's well known that the company is diversifying its AI offerings. Meta has revenue-sharing agreements with various companies that host its open-source Llama model collection. Additionally, the company recently launched an API for customizing and evaluating Llama models, which could further monetize these resources. During Meta’s Q1 earnings call on Wednesday, CEO Mark Zuckerberg hinted at potential revenue streams from Meta AI, the company’s AI assistant. He suggested that Meta AI may eventually display advertisements and offer premium subscriptions for enhanced features. The court documents also shed light on Meta’s substantial investment in AI. In 2024, the company allocated over $900 million for its "GenAI" projects, and this year, the budget could surpass $1 billion. This does not account for the extensive infrastructure required to run and train AI models. Meta has previously announced plans to spend between $60 billion and $80 billion on capital expenditures in 2025, primarily for building new data centers. These budget allocations might have been even larger if Meta had pursued legal avenues to acquire training data. The documents reveal that in 2023, the company considered spending upwards of $200 million on training data, with about $100 million earmarked specifically for book licensing. However, it is alleged that Meta opted for alternative methods, such as large-scale piracy of ebooks, to gather the necessary data. Despite these allegations, Meta has not immediately provided a comment on the situation. The revelations highlight the tech giant's aggressive strategy in the AI market, underscored by both its financial projections and the significant investments in research and development. As the lawsuit progresses, the broader implications of Meta's actions could reshape the landscape of AI ethics and content rights in the digital era.