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Nothing can budge Zuckerberg’s decision to spend billions on Artificial Intelligence (AI), not even the fact that AI is a bubble that could burst one day. Zuckerberg himself knows this. The 41-year-old CEO of Meta, while speaking on a podcast, has admitted that the ongoing rush toward artificial intelligence could end up being a “bubble.” But unlike others who might take that as a warning, he says it’s no reason to stop spending.“If we end up misspending a couple of hundred billion dollars, that’s going to be unfortunate,” Zuckerberg said. “But the risk is higher on the other side.” He explained that for Meta, holding back would be a bigger mistake than going too far. “We’re not at risk of going out of business,” he added, noting that smaller AI labs could run out of cash if markets tighten or funding dries up.Meta reported strong revenue growth but warned of much higher spending next year as it builds massive data centres for AI. The Facebook and Instagram parent said its capital expenses will rise “notably” in 2026 due to investments in artificial intelligence.The company’s third-quarter results showed revenue up 26%, but expenses jumped even higher at 32%, says a Reuters report. Meta also took a $16 billion one-time charge related to a US tax law change, which dragged down its quarterly profit to $2.7 billion. Without that, Meta’s net income would have been about $18.6 billion.Meta’s stock dropped nearly 8% after the announcement as investors worried about ballooning costs.Zuckerberg said Meta is building infrastructure for what he called “superintelligence”, a future point when machines may outthink humans. He said it’s better to “front-load” capacity now so Meta is ready if AI advances faster than expected.If progress takes longer, the company can redirect that computing power to improve its core business, which is from ads to content recommendations.Meta recently reorganised its AI efforts under a new unit called Superintelligence Labs, which Zuckerberg claims already has “the highest talent density in the industry.” Meta has also become one of the biggest buyers of Nvidia’s powerful AI chips.Between Meta, Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, and OpenAI, AI data centre construction has exploded, sparking discussions and rather more fears that the tech world may be overspending on AI without guaranteed payoffs. Each gigawatt of compute power can cost over $40 billion, according to industry estimates. Even so, Zuckerberg isn’t backing down. For him, the real danger is missing out. “The risk is probably in not being aggressive enough rather than being somewhat too aggressive,” he said.Read More: Meta, TikTok and Snap Say They Oppose Australia’s Teen Social Media Ban but Will Comply With It
