Meta's AI agent vision fails to impress investors, shares tumble 11%

Meta's stock fell 11% after the company reported quarterly earnings that missed analyst estimates. Earnings per share came in at $6.18 versus the expected $7.22, while revenue reached $60.80 billion against a forecast of $60.17 billion. The company forecast Q3 revenue between $61 billion and $64 billion, below the average analyst estimate of $63.15 billion. Daily active users across Meta's platforms were 3.6 billion, slightly below the forecast 3.61 billion. Capital expenditure guidance narrowed to $130-145 billion from $125-145 billion. Free cash flow dropped sharply from $8.55 billion to $784 million due to AI infrastructure investments. CEO Mark Zuckerberg outlined plans for personal AI agents that would work 24/7 to help users with goals, health, relationships, and finances, differentiating Meta from competitors like Anthropic and OpenAI who focus on programming and enterprise agents. Total costs and expenses for Q2 were $42.03 billion, up 55% year-over-year, including $2.4 billion for litigation and $1.18 billion for severance. Net income fell from $18.34 billion to $15.85 billion. Reality Labs posted an operating loss of $4.6 billion on revenue of $431 million.