Threads has ‘just under’ 100 million monthly active users, says Mark Zuckerberg during Meta’s earnings call

The reports of a decline in Meta’s Threads social media app usage might have been a bit exaggerated it seems like. Mark Zuckerberg announced that the app presently boasts "just under" 100 million monthly active users, and he envisions a "good chance" of it reaching 1 billion users in the next couple of years.

“I thought for a long time, there should be a billion-person public conversations app that is a bit more positive and I think that if we keep at this for a few more years, then I think we have a good chance of achieving our vision there,” Zuckerberg communicated during the company's third-quarter earnings call.

“Threads also remains a compelling long-term opportunity, and we’re excited to build on the strong product momentum we have going into next year,” Meta CFO Susan Li said during the call.

Threads' growth has been under close scrutiny since its launch in July. The app garnered 100 million sign-ups within its first week but encountered a decline in engagement due to complaints about limited functionality and an inundation of brand posts in feeds.

During the Threads launch event, Instagram head Adam Mosseri expressed Meta's intention to engage in robust competition with X, the platform that was once Twitter.

Meta has steadily introduced new features, and engagement appears to have rebounded in recent weeks, especially as Elon Musk implements rapid changes to X, such as removing headlines from links. The Wall Street Journal reported this week that Threads has succeeded in attracting former "power users" from X.

Threads' growth wasn't the sole positive development for Meta, as the company reported a revenue of just over $34 billion for the quarter, marking a 23 percent increase from the previous year. An impressive 3.9 billion people now use one of the company's platforms each month, reaching a new milestone for the social media giant. During a discussion with analysts, Zuckerberg underscored that Meta's recent focus on "efficiency," which led to shedding over 20,000 jobs in the last year, has proven to be an effective strategy in the face of a "very volatile world."

Zuckerberg also revealed Meta's increasing emphasis on generative AI moving forward. "We're going to continue deprioritising several non-AI projects across the company to redirect efforts towards AI," Zuckerberg announced.

However, these AI investments won't detract from the company's commitment to spending on the metaverse. Reality Labs, Meta's division overseeing its augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) ventures, sustained significant losses in the multibillion-dollar range. Revenue from Reality Labs dwindled to just $210 million, with losses surging to $3.7 billion for the quarter and totalling more than $11 billion since the start of 2023.

Meta reported its most robust operating margins in the past two years. Additionally, they managed to curtail expenses for the fiscal year. However, Meta foresees that its spending in 2024 will surpass Wall Street's estimates. This is due to the company postponing hiring needs from the current year to the next while maintaining investments in AI infrastructure. Furthermore, Meta expressed concerns that the conflict in Israel and Gaza could potentially dampen fourth-quarter sales.

Meta's stock, which has seen a remarkable increase of nearly 150 per cent this year, experienced fluctuations in after-hours trading. Initially, it gained 3 per cent before later declining to trade 3 per cent below the closing price after two hours.

Also Read

Meta and Instagram sued over depression, anxiety, insomnia linked to kids

Elon Musk's social media platform X rolls out audio, video calling for some users