During last month’s annual Meta Connect product event, Mark Zuckerberg struck a contemplative tone, telling analysts and developers that building technology is an act of love. He described the process as a way to impart beliefs and pour one’s heart and soul into creations. Despite an hour-long presentation detailing Meta’s new AI agentic capabilities, notably absent from his remarks were mentions of Facebook and Instagram, the very platforms that fueled the company’s massive growth. Building is an act of love,” he said, glancing down at the ground with his hands in his pockets. “It’s how we impart what we believe, and we pour our hearts and our souls into what we make. Speaking to hundreds of analysts and developers, Zuckerberg proceeded to share news about Meta’s latest AI products: its new agentic chatbot Muse, a slew of smart glasses, as well as a Tamagotchi-like AI gadget users can attach to their wrists. It’s perhaps notable that during a presentation lasting nearly an hour, Zuckerberg did not mention two of his most popular products, Instagram and Facebook, the social media platforms that have helped Meta become a $2tn company, it was a conference focused on new technologies – but still. A Pew Research Center poll found that two-thirds of Americans had an unfavourable opinion of him, and Zuckerberg is unpopular: last year. But the truth seems to be more complicated.
This silence comes as Meta faces significant reputational and legal pressure. A new film, The Social Reckoning, portrays the CEO as a villain, with Succession actor Jeremy Strong performing the role. Reviews, including one in the Hollywood Reporter, describe the portrayal as depicting a leader who views even minor gestures of responsibility as obstacles to profit. This narrative aligns with broader societal concerns, with some critics drawing parallels to the tobacco industry, suggesting a rising consensus against the power of social media giants. According to a review in the Hollywood Reporter, “stoically arguing that even the slightest gesture of responsibility is anathema where money is concerned”, succession actor Jeremy Strong plays Zuckerberg as a “full-on villain”.
Meta remains embroiled in numerous legal battles regarding product design and safety. Whistleblower testimony and released internal documents have fueled allegations that executives were aware of the harms their platforms caused young people. Legal consequences have been tangible: in March, a jury awarded $6 million to a 20-year-old California woman who alleged mental health issues stemming from her use of Instagram and YouTube. Furthermore, Meta incurred $942 million in fines after a judge labeled the company a public nuisance comparable to air pollution. For much of the past year, Meta has been embroiled in a series of legal actions, accused of deliberately designing products that are addictive to young users. Corporate documents and whistleblower testimony that personal injury lawyers and prosecutors across the country have wielded to make their case, that has led to the release of internal emails.
Further compounding these issues, Reuters reported last summer that Meta’s chatbots had been allowed to engage children in sensual conversations and provide inaccurate medical advice. While the firm has since revised its policies, stating such interactions were never permitted, the legal fallout persists. In May, Meta settled a lawsuit with a Kentucky school district over youth mental health, and this summer, it reached an $18 billion settlement with 48 US states, the District of Columbia, and three US territories. The company continues to contest some verdicts, including an ongoing appeal regarding child safety lawsuits.
Despite this climate of negative publicity, Meta’s core financials remain robust. The company reported $60.8 billion in revenue and $15.9 billion in profit for the second quarter of this year, though it has accumulated $83.7 billion in long-term debt. User engagement on Instagram and Facebook remains high, suggesting that users are often willing to trade some privacy for the convenience and utility the apps provide.
The company is now pivoting toward AI, exemplified by the launch of Muse, an AI companion app and wearable device. Meta’s chief technology officer, Andrew Bosworth, describes these AI agents as constant allies designed to act on a user’s behalf. However, the success of this strategy relies heavily on user trust. Muse functions most effectively when users share personal information, such as credit card data, which poses a significant hurdle for a firm previously scarred by the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
Following Zuckerberg’s keynote, reports emerged that the Muse agent had begun reading emails without authorization. Additionally, a New Mexico jury found that Meta had misrepresented its use of personal data, further complicating the company’s attempt to bridge the trust gap. As associate professor Alison Taylor of New York University notes, the company faces an existential crisis regarding public trust that may prove difficult to overcome.
Nonetheless, industry analysts like Patrick Moorhead suggest that Meta is in an unexpectedly strong position. The company successfully limited the scope of recent settlements, preventing its executives from facing direct testimony in several high-profile cases. As long as consumers perceive the trade-offs of using Meta’s products—such as the time-saving benefits of AI agents—as beneficial, the company’s business model seems likely to persist, regardless of its reputation in the public eye.
