Ray Price
Mark Zuckerberg's metaverse ambitions have largely faded from headlines, replaced by a pivot that is shaking up the cloud computing sector. Meta Platforms (META) is reportedly preparing to sell access to its artificial intelligence computing capacity and models, a move that sent its own stock up 8.6% on July 2 while knocking CoreWeave (CRWV) down roughly 14% the same day.
Key Takeaways
- Bloomberg reported on July 1 that Meta plans to sell AI computing power and model access, a step beyond its original metaverse focused Reality Labs strategy.
- Meta shares rose 8.6% the day after the report; CoreWeave shares fell about 14% on fears of new competition.
- Goldman Sachs Research projects the cloud computing market could hit $2 trillion by 2030.
- Meta has a $21 billion cloud capacity deal with CoreWeave running through 2032, creating a potential conflict of interest if Meta becomes a rival supplier.
- Meta plans to spend up to $145 billion in 2026 on AI infrastructure, and renting out excess capacity could help offset that spending.
From Mark Zuckerberg's Metaverse Bet to an AI Cloud Play
Zuckerberg spent years and tens of billions of dollars pitching the metaverse as Meta's next major platform, renaming the company in 2021 and pouring capital into Reality Labs. That division has continued to post steep losses, and investor patience has visibly shifted toward AI as the more immediate growth driver. The reported plan to monetize spare computing capacity marks a pragmatic turn: rather than betting purely on immersive virtual worlds, Meta is positioning its data center buildout as a revenue source in its own right.
The mechanics matter here. According to the Bloomberg report, Meta is weighing two approaches: selling raw computing capacity outright, or offering access to its AI models in a structure resembling Amazon's Bedrock platform on Amazon Web Services. In that model, Meta would operate its own data centers and custom silicon, charging developers for access to the models running on top of that infrastructure. Either path turns what has been a pure cost center into a potential top line contributor.
Why CoreWeave Investors Reacted Differently
The stock market's split verdict on the same headline is instructive. Meta gained nearly 9% because investors read the news as diversification and monetization of a $145 billion 2026 infrastructure budget. CoreWeave lost 14% because Meta is not just a potential new entrant into CoreWeave's specialty, it is also one of CoreWeave's largest customers, tied into a $21 billion cloud capacity agreement that runs through 2032.
That dual relationship is the source of the risk. If Meta scales up its own capacity for external sale, the company could eventually reduce its reliance on CoreWeave's infrastructure while simultaneously competing for the same enterprise AI customers CoreWeave is chasing. Nothing in the reporting suggests Meta has canceled or altered its existing CoreWeave contract, but the market is pricing in the possibility of both lost revenue and intensified competition down the line.
Sizing Up a Market Goldman Sachs Pegs at $2 Trillion
Goldman Sachs Research estimates cloud computing revenue could reach $2 trillion by 2030, a figure that frames why Meta's move carries weight beyond a single earnings cycle. Even a modest share of that market would represent a meaningful new revenue line for a company whose core business remains advertising. For context, Meta's infrastructure spending plans, up to $145 billion in 2026 alone, have drawn scrutiny from investors wary of capital intensity without a clear return. Turning excess capacity into a saleable product gives Meta a partial answer to that criticism.
Meta's stock has still fallen nearly 7% year to date as of this writing, meaning the cloud news, while a sharp one day pop, has not fully reversed the broader 2026 slide. Whether the AI computing plan becomes a durable growth driver or remains speculative will depend on how quickly Meta moves from planning to execution, since Bloomberg's reporting indicates the initiative is still in early stages with nothing finalized.
How Far Will Meta Push Into Cloud Territory?
The open question is whether Meta formalizes this plan at all, and if so, how aggressively it competes with the very cloud providers it currently pays. CoreWeave's contract runs through 2032, giving both companies years of overlap to navigate. For now, the market has drawn its own conclusion: Meta's diversification looks like opportunity, and CoreWeave's concentration risk looks more exposed than it did a week earlier.
Frequently Asked Questions
What was Mark Zuckerberg's GPA?
Public, verified figures for Zuckerberg's college GPA at Harvard are not part of the record covered by this reporting and are not something that can be confirmed here.
What is Mark Zuckerberg's metaverse?
The metaverse refers to Meta's vision of interconnected virtual and augmented reality spaces where people work, socialize and play, developed primarily through the company's Reality Labs division since the 2021 rebrand from Facebook to Meta Platforms.
Is Mark Zuckerberg deleting the metaverse?
There is no indication in current reporting that Meta is deleting or abandoning the metaverse outright; the company's public spending focus has simply shifted more heavily toward AI infrastructure and computing.
Is Mark Zuckerberg shutting down metaverse?
Meta has not announced a shutdown of its metaverse or Reality Labs efforts. The recent news covered here concerns a separate initiative to sell AI computing capacity and model access, not the closure of metaverse projects.
What happened to Mark Zuckerberg's metaverse?
Reality Labs, the division behind Meta's metaverse push, has continued operating but has been overshadowed by the company's AI investments, including the reported plan to monetize spare AI computing capacity that drove the 8.6% stock jump on July 2.
