Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg leaves the federal courthouse in downtown Los Angeles after defending the company in a landmark social media addiction trial, Feb. 19, 2026.
Jon Putman | Anadolu | Getty Images
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said his company could enter the cloud computing market if it overspends on data centers and ends up with excess capacity.
“it’s definitely on the table,” Zuckerberg said on Wednesday at Meta’s annual shareholder meeting, in response to a question about potentially competing with Amazon and Microsoft in cloud computing.
Zuckerberg reiterated comments made on an earnings call last year, noting that “almost every week there are different companies that come to us from outside asking us to both stand up an API service or asking if we have compute that they could buy from us at some premium to what we’ve bought it at.”
Of the four giant hyperscalers in the U.S. Meta is the only one that doesn’t have a cloud infrastructure and services business. Meanwhile, Meta’s spending to fuel artificial intelligence development is right up there with its rivals.
In April, Meta raised its 2026 guidance for AI-related capital expenditures to between $125 billion and $145 billion, up from a prior range of $115 billion to $135 billion. Meta shares sank 7% despite better-than-expected first-quarter earnings, underscoring concern about the company’s hefty AI spending.
Zuckerberg is reminding Wall Street that it has the ability to rent out some of its computing resources.
“We haven’t done that yet because we think that we have a use for the compute,” Zuckerberg said Wednesday. “Obviously if we get to a point where we feel that we have overbuilt, then that is an option that we have, and that is partially what gives us confidence in investing in building this out.”
Zuckerberg also discussed the company’s plans involving AI-powered personal assistants, an effort he briefly detailed in an April earnings call after the debut of Meta’s Muse Spark AI model.
“People will be more important in the future, not less, and as people inevitably want to get more out of these agents, there will be an opportunity to charge for premium or high compute versions,” Zuckerberg said.
Although Meta offers businesses some AI-related features on WhatsApp, those services are currently free. Zuckerberg said the company is working at “establishing a longer-term monetization model as well.”
Separately on Wednesday, Meta revealed that it will begin testing monthly subscription services for its Meta AI app and website, marking the first time the company will charge users for AI features. The Meta AI subscription plans will cost either $7.99 or $19.99 a month, depending on certain features, and will initially be available in Singapore, Guatemala and Bolivia.
Zuckerberg said at last year’s shareholder meeting that as Meta AI improves, the company could offer “a subscription service so that people can pay to use more compute.”
WATCH: Meta reshapes workforce as AI disrupts entry level hiring.
