Meta is developing AI-powered friends to help address the loneliness epidemic, CEO Mark Zuckerberg revealed in a recent interview with Dwarkesh Patel.
The company has already launched a new AI assistant app described as ‘the assistant that gets to know your preferences, remembers context and is personalised to you.’ Now, Zuckerberg says he wants to take this concept further with AI companions that serve as virtual friends.
Citing statistics, Zuckerberg pointed out that the average American has fewer than three friends and suggested that people desire more meaningful connections. However, he clarified that AI friends are not intended to replace in-person relationships.
‘There’s a lot of questions people ask, like is this going to replace real-life connections?’ he said. ‘My default is that the answer to that is probably no.’
Despite Zuckerberg’s optimism, experts have voiced serious concerns. While AI companions may offer short-term support and help socially awkward individuals practise interactions, they warn that relying too heavily on virtual friends could worsen isolation.
Daniel Cox, director of the Survey Center on American Life, explained that although AI friends may ease feelings of boredom or loneliness, they could also prevent people from seeking real human contact. Additional issues include privacy and safety.
Robbie Torney from Common Sense Media raised alarms about data collection, noting that the more users engage with AI friends, the more personal information they share. According to Meta’s privacy policy, user conversations and media can be used to train AI models.
Furthermore, The Wall Street Journal reported that Meta’s chatbots had engaged in inappropriate conversations with minors, though Meta claims controls have now been put in place to stop this behaviour.
While Meta continues to push forward, balancing technological innovation with ethical considerations remains crucial. Experts stress that AI friends should serve as a supplement, not a substitute, for real-world connections.
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Meta has secured a major legal victory against Israeli surveillance company NSO Group, with a California jury awarding $168 million in damages.
The ruling concludes a six-year legal battle over the unlawful deployment of NSO’s Pegasus spyware, which targeted journalists, human rights activists, and other individuals through a vulnerability in WhatsApp.
The verdict includes $444,719 in compensatory damages and $167.3 million in punitive damages.
Meta hailed the decision as a milestone for privacy, calling it ‘the first victory against the development and use of illegal spyware that threatens the safety and privacy of everyone’. NSO, meanwhile, said it would review the outcome and consider further legal steps, including an appeal.
The case, launched by WhatsApp in 2019, exposed the far-reaching use of Pegasus. Between 2018 and 2020, NSO generated $61.7 million in revenue from a single exploited vulnerability, with profits potentially reaching $40 million.
Court documents revealed that Pegasus was deployed against 1,223 individuals across 51 countries, with the highest number of victims in Mexico, India, Bahrain, Morocco, and Pakistan. Spain, where officials were targeted in 2022, ranked as the highest Western democracy on the list.
While NSO has long maintained that its spyware is sold exclusively to governments for counterterrorism purposes, the data highlighted its extensive use in authoritarian and semi-authoritarian regimes.
A former NSO employee testified that the company attempted to sell Pegasus to United States police forces, though those efforts were unsuccessful.
Beyond the financial penalty, the ruling exposed NSO’s internal operations. The company runs a 140-person research team with a $50 million budget dedicated to discovering smartphone vulnerabilities. Clients have included Saudi Arabia, Mexico, and Uzbekistan.
However, the firm’s conduct drew harsh criticism from Judge Phyllis Hamilton, who accused NSO of withholding evidence and ignoring court orders. Israeli officials reportedly intervened last year to prevent sensitive documents from reaching the US courts.
Privacy advocates welcomed the decision. Natalia Krapiva, a senior lawyer at Access Now, said it sends a strong message to the spyware industry. ‘This will hopefully show spyware companies that there will be consequences if you are careless, if you are brazen, and if you act as NSO did in these cases,’ she said.
Meta Platforms has launched a dedicated AI assistant app powered by its open-source Llama 4 language model, stepping up efforts to compete with leading chatbot providers like OpenAI.
Unlike typical AI chat tools, Meta AI integrates personal data from the company’s popular platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger, to deliver more tailored responses.
According to Meta, the assistant can remember details users choose to share and adapt its replies based on individual preferences and behaviours across its services.
The personalised functionality is currently limited to users in the United States and Canada. The launch coincides with Meta’s first LlamaCon event, held on 29 April at its California headquarters.
CEO Mark Zuckerberg has committed up to $65 billion in capital expenditure to strengthen the company’s AI infrastructure. He believes Meta AI will become the world’s most widely-used assistant by 2025, potentially reaching more than 1 billion users.
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Connected to Trump’s foreign policy is the UN situation. Namely, the UN faces renewed financial uncertainty as Donald Trump’s administration reviews all US support for international organisations.
The US president has instead proposed substantial reductions or even the elimination of federal income taxes once the full impact of import tariffs is realised. In a 27 April post on Truth Social, Trump revealed that the plan would primarily benefit individuals earning less than $200,000 annually. Trump has also signed executive orders easing his controversial 25% tariffs on automobiles and parts to relieve pressure on carmakers struggling with rising costs.
The UAE has announced the launch of its AI Academy, aiming to strengthen the country’s position in AI innovation both regionally and globally.
The United Kingdom and the United States are set to strengthen their collaboration in advancing cryptocurrency adoption.
Microsoft has unveiled a set of five digital commitments aimed at supporting Europe’s technological and economic future.
Intel is witnessing strong demand for its older Raptor Lake and Alder Lake processors, as buyers shy away from newer AI-enhanced chips like Meteor and Lunar Lake.
For the main updates and reflections, consult the Radar and Reading Corner below.
As digital tensions rise globally, President Trump’s early tech agenda signals a strategic gamble that bets on tradition while the rest of the world pushes for transformation.
As the UN braces for possible funding upheavals, the future of global cooperation could hinge on decisions unfolding quietly behind closed doors in Washington.
As global powers invest in shaping the next generation of AI innovators, classrooms emerge as unexpected arenas where technology, diplomacy, and geopolitics converge.
The competition between the US and China in AI education is emerging as a vital battleground amidst geopolitical tensions. Both nations prioritise AI education to prepare future generations for a transformative technological landscape.
During President Trump’s first 100 days, technology policy exhibited continuity rather than disruption, focusing on AI and digital regulation characterised by incremental adjustments.
What if the internet’s true legacy isn’t connection, but emotional warfare? In 2015, Aldo Matteucci asked whether we’ve unleashed a fire that even Shiva could not contain.
WSIS+20 review: What’s in it for Africa? An expert-guided dialogue among diplomats | Dedicated exclusively to African Permanent Missions to the UN in Geneva.
Swiss Plateforme Tripartite: Meeting on WSIS+20 On 6 May, the Swiss Federal Office of Communications (OFCOM) will host a virtual meeting on the WSIS+20
Meta hosted its first-ever LlamaCon, a high-profile developer conference centred around its open-source language models. Timed to coincide with the release of its Q1 earnings, the event showcased Llama 4, Meta’s newest and most powerful open-weight model yet.
The message was clear – Meta wants to lead the next generation of AI on its own terms, and with an open-source edge. Beyond presentations, the conference represented an attempt to reframe Meta’s public image.
Once defined by social media and privacy controversies, Meta is positioning itself as a visionary AI infrastructure company. LlamaCon wasn’t just about a model. It was about a movement Meta wants to lead, with developers, startups, and enterprises as co-builders.
By holding LlamaCon the same week as its earnings call, Meta strategically emphasised that its AI ambitions are not side projects. They are central to the company’s identity, strategy, and investment priorities moving forward. This convergence of messaging signals a bold new chapter in Meta’s evolution.
The rise of Llama: From open-source curiosity to strategic priority
When Meta introduced LLaMA 1 in 2023, the AI community took notice of its open-weight release policy. Unlike OpenAI and Anthropic, Meta allowed researchers and developers to download, fine-tune, and deploy Llama models on their own infrastructure. That decision opened a floodgate of experimentation and grassroots innovation.
Now with Llama 4, the models have matured significantly, featuring better instruction tuning, multilingual capacity, and improved safety guardrails. Meta’s AI researchers have incorporated lessons learned from previous iterations and community feedback, making Llama 4 an update and a strategic inflexion point.
Crucially, Meta is no longer releasing Llama as a research novelty. It is now a platform and stable foundation for third-party tools, enterprise solutions, and Meta’s AI products. That is a turning point, where open-source ideology meets enterprise-grade execution.
Zuckerberg’s bet: AI as the engine of Meta’s next chapter
Mark Zuckerberg has rarely shied away from bold, long-term bets—whether it’s the pivot to mobile in the early 2010s or the more recent metaverse gamble. At LlamaCon, he clarified that AI is now the company’s top priority, surpassing even virtual reality in strategic importance.
He framed Meta as a ‘general-purpose AI company’, focused on both the consumer layer (via chatbots and assistants) and the foundational layer (models and infrastructure). Meta CEO envisions a world where Meta powers both the AI you talk to and the AI your apps are built on—a dual play that rivals Microsoft’s partnership with OpenAI.
This bet comes with risk. Investors are still sceptical about Meta’s ability to turn research breakthroughs into a commercial advantage. But Zuckerberg seems convinced that whoever controls the AI stack—hardware, models, and tooling—will control the next decade of innovation, and Meta intends to be one of those players.
A costly future: Meta’s massive AI infrastructure investment
Meta’s capital expenditure guidance for 2025—$60 to $65 billion—is among the largest in tech history. These funds will be spent primarily on AI training clusters, data centres, and next-gen chips.
That level of spending underscores Meta’s belief that scale is a competitive advantage in the LLM era. Bigger compute means faster training, better fine-tuning, and more responsive inference—especially for billion-parameter models like Llama 4 and beyond.
However, such an investment raises questions about whether Meta can recoup this spending in the short term. Will it build enterprise services, or rely solely on indirect value via engagement and ads? At this point, no monetisation plan is directly tied to Llama—only a vision and the infrastructure to support it.
Economic clouds: Revenue growth vs Wall Street’s expectations
Meta reported an 11% year-over-year increase in revenue in Q1 2025, driven by steady performance across its ad platforms. However, Wall Street reacted negatively, with the company’s stock falling nearly 13% following the earnings report, because investors are worried about the ballooning costs associated with Meta’s AI ambitions.
Despite revenue growth, Meta’s margins are thinning, mainly due to front-loaded investments in infrastructure and R&D. While Meta frames these as essential for long-term dominance in AI, investors are still anchored to short-term profit expectations.
A fundamental tension is at play here – Meta is acting like a venture-stage AI startup with moonshot spending, while being valued as a mature, cash-generating public company. Whether this tension resolves through growth or retrenchment remains to be seen.
Global headwinds: China, tariffs, and the shifting tech supply chain
Beyond internal financial pressures, Meta faces growing external challenges. Trade tensions between the US and China have disrupted the global supply chain for semiconductors, AI chips, and data centre components.
Meta’s international outlook is dimming with tariffs increasing and Chinese advertising revenue falling. That is particularly problematic because Meta’s AI infrastructure relies heavily on global suppliers and fabrication facilities. Any disruption in chip delivery, especially GPUs and custom silicon, could derail its training schedules and deployment timelines.
At the same time, Meta is trying to rebuild its hardware supply chain, including in-house chip design and alternative sourcing from regions like India and Southeast Asia. These moves are defensive but reflect how AI strategy is becoming inseparable from geopolitics.
Llama 4 in context: How it compares to GPT-4 and Gemini
Llama 4 represents a significant leap from Llama 2 and is now comparable to GPT-4 in a range of benchmarks. Early feedback suggests strong performance in logic, multilingual reasoning, and code generation.
However, how it handles tool use, memory, and advanced agentic tasks is still unclear. Compared to Gemini 1.5, Google’s flagship model, Llama 4 may still fall short in certain use cases, especially those requiring long context windows and deep integration with other Google services.
But Llama has one powerful advantage – it’s free to use, modify, and self-host. That makes Llama 4 a compelling option for developers and companies seeking control over their AI stack without paying per-token fees or exposing sensitive data to third parties.
Open source vs closed AI: Strategic gamble or masterstroke?
Meta’s open-weight philosophy differentiates it from rivals, whose models are mainly gated, API-bound, and proprietary. By contrast, Meta freely gives away its most valuable assets, such as weights, training details, and documentation.
Openness drives adoption. It creates ecosystems, accelerates tooling, and builds developer goodwill. Meta’s strategy is to win the AI competition not by charging rent, but by giving others the keys to build on its models. In doing so, it hopes to shape the direction of AI development globally.
Still, there are risks. Open weights can be misused, fine-tuned for malicious purposes, or leaked into products Meta doesn’t control. But Meta is betting that being everywhere is more powerful than being gated. And so far, that bet is paying off—at least in influence, if not yet in revenue.
Can Meta’s open strategy deliver long-term returns?
Meta’s LlamaCon wasn’t just a tech event but a philosophical declaration. In an era where AI power is increasingly concentrated and monetised, Meta chooses a different path based on openness, infrastructure, and community adoption.
The company invests tens of billions of dollars without a clear monetisation model. It is placing a massive bet that open models and proprietary infrastructure can become the dominant framework for AI development.
Meta’s move positions it as the Android of the LLM era—ubiquitous, flexible, and impossible to ignore. The road ahead will be shaped by both technical breakthroughs and external forces—regulation, economics, and geopolitics.
Whether Meta’s open-source gamble proves visionary or reckless, one thing is clear – the AI landscape is no longer just about who has the most innovative model. It’s about who builds the broadest ecosystem.
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Meta has announced layoffs within its Reality Labs division, impacting Oculus Studios and hardware development teams. Among those affected is the team behind Supernatural, a popular VR fitness app that Meta acquired for over $400 million.
The company stated that these restructuring efforts aim to improve efficiency and focus on developing future mixed reality experiences, particularly in fitness and gaming. Despite reaffirming its commitment to VR and mixed reality, Meta’s moves reflect its Quest headset business challenges.
While its smart glasses partnership with Ray-Ban has exceeded sales expectations, Quest devices continue to underperform, with the latest Quest 3S already seeing discounts less than a year after release.
Why does it matter?
The layoffs signal Meta’s attempt to streamline operations as it navigates a shifting market for virtual and mixed reality. Although the company promises ongoing support for its VR communities, these changes highlight the pressures Meta faces in turning its ambitious metaverse and hardware ventures into sustainable success.
Would you like to learn more about AI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!
The past week has delivered another wave of developments redefining the digital world. Legal battles involving Big Tech took centre stage on both sides of the Atlantic, with the EU and the USA involved in antitrust disputes, amid an escalating global trade war that may be fuelling this regulatory reckoning.
The EU has imposed its first fines under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), targeting Apple and Meta for anti-competitive practices. Apple faces a €500 million penalty for restricting app developers from directing users to alternative purchasing options outside its App Store. Meta has been fined €200 million for its ‘consent or pay’ model, which required users to either consent to personalised ads or pay a fee for an ad-free experience on Facebook and Instagram.
Meta is also facing fresh legal backlash in France as 67 French media companies representing over 200 publications filed a lawsuit alleging unfair competition in the digital advertising market.
European regulators are putting pressure on Big Tech, with Alphabet’s Google and Elon Musk’s X expected to be the next in line for penalties under the EU’s tough new digital rules. Despite US President Donald Trump’s objections, the EU appears undeterred, viewing the DMA as a veiled tariff on American tech firms.
On the other side of the Atlantic, we have the Google antitrust court case in the USA, where the US Department of Justice (DOJ) added the AI-driven search monopoly accusation to its court file. Namely, the DOJ launched its opening arguments in a long-awaited landmark antitrust trial against Google, aiming to curb the tech giant’s dominance in online search and prevent it from leveraging AI to entrench its position further.
One of the potential conditions for Google to comply with regulatory requirements may involve divesting its Chrome browser, for which OpenAI has expressed acquisition interest.
South Korea’s data protection authority has flagged serious privacy concerns over the operations of Chinese AI startup DeepSeek, accusing the company of transferring personal data and user-generated content abroad without consent.
Dutch banking giant ING is preparing to launch a Euro-based stablecoin. It is teaming up with other financial institutions to form a consortium.
Staying in the Netherlands, Adyen, the Dutch payment processor, fell victim to three coordinated DDoS attacks on Monday evening, severely disrupting debit card and online payments.
A viral development of the past seven days is the story about a controversial new startup called Cluely, which has secured $5.3 million in seed funding to expand its AI-powered tool designed to help users ‘cheat on everything,’ from job interviews to exams.
To finish, the blog: Dr Jovan Kurbalija, the Director of Diplo, is dealing with AI and linguistics this time. In his blog ‘Linguists in the AI era: From resistance to renaissance,’ he introspects the shift from initial scepticism among linguists to a newfound synergy, as AI tools enhance language analysis, translation, and cultural understanding in diplomacy.
For the main updates and reflections, consult the Radar and Reading Corner below.
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Diplo Academy will launch the Humanitarian Diplomacy online diploma course on 16 September 2024 in partnership with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. Stay updated on courses by subscribing to their newsletter.
The conference, organised by Medicus Mundi Schweiz, will provide a platform for examining the evolving role of AI and digital technologies in shaping public health and sexual and reproductive health…
Meta, the parent company of Facebook, is facing fresh legal backlash in France as 67 French media companies representing over 200 publications filed a lawsuit alleging unfair competition in the digital advertising market.
The case, brought before the Paris business tribunal, accuses Meta of abusing its dominant position through massive personal data collection and targeted advertising without proper consent.
The case marks the latest legal dispute in a string of EU legal challenges for the tech giant this week.
Media outlets such as TF1, France TV, BFM TV, and major newspaper groups like Le Figaro, Liberation, and Radio France are among the plaintiffs.
They argue that Meta’s ad dominance is built on practices that undermine fair competition and jeopardise the sustainability of traditional media.
Meanwhile, the EU regulators fined Meta and Apple earlier this year for breaching European digital market rules, while online privacy advocates have launched parallel complaints over Meta’s data handling.
Legal firms Scott+Scott and Darrois Villey Maillot Brochier represent the French media alliance.
Would you like to learn more about AI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!
Meta has announced it is ramping up efforts to protect teenagers on Instagram by deploying AI to detect users who may have lied about their age. The technology will automatically place suspected underage users into Teen Accounts, even if their profiles state they are adults.
These special accounts come with stricter safety settings designed for users under 16. Those who believe they’ve been misclassified will have the option to adjust their settings manually.
Instead of relying solely on self-reported birthdates, Meta is using its AI to analyse behaviour and signals that suggest a user might be younger than claimed.
While the company has used this technology to estimate age ranges before, it is now applying it more aggressively to catch teens who attempt to bypass the platform’s safeguards. The tech giant insists it’s working to ensure the accuracy of these classifications to prevent mistakes.
Alongside this new AI tool, Meta will also begin sending notifications to parents about their children’s Instagram settings.
These alerts, which are sent only to parents who have Instagram accounts of their own, aim to encourage open conversations at home about the importance of honest age representation online.
Teen Accounts were first introduced last year and are designed to limit access to harmful content, reduce contact from strangers, and promote healthier screen time habits.
Instead of granting unrestricted access, these accounts are private by default, block unsolicited messages, and remind teens to take breaks after prolonged scrolling.
Meta says the goal is to adapt to the digital age and partner with parents to make Instagram a safer space for young users.
Would you like to learn more about AI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!
Last week, we focused on the effects that the global trade war is producing worldwide. After President Trump’s administration increased tariffs, forcing major tech firms to rethink their strategies urgently, Apple swiftly responded to the looming trade barriers by orchestrating a record-breaking $2 billion iPhone airlift from India to the US, strategically sidestepping the elevated tariffs.
Meanwhile, the US has temporarily exempted certain critical electronics imported from China, including smartphones and semiconductor components, from tariff hikes.
The ripple effects of the US tariffs extend beyond US borders. South Korea, heavily reliant on its semiconductor exports, has launched an ambitious $23 billion investment into its domestic chip industry.
Parallel to the tariff turmoil, major US tech firms are embroiled in intensifying legal disputes concerning digital market dominance. The US Justice Department is pursuing legal action against Google, alleging monopolistic practices within its search and advertising services.
These legal confrontations are not confined to the US. Japan recently directed Google to address its dominant position on Android search services, pressing for enhanced competition and user choice.
The US administration has tightened rules on AI chip exports, affecting AMD’s MI308 products and potentially causing major financial losses for the company.
A cyber defence exercise involving 20 allied nations was held to strengthen coordination and improve response to attacks on critical infrastructure, led by NATO.
As the global race to harness AI accelerates, a new international effort is working to ensure that progress doesn’t come at the cost of people or the planet.
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Conversation on IP and AI will take place on April 23-24, 2025, focusing on the role of copyright infrastructure in supporting both rights holders and AI-driven innovation.
The Hamburg Sustainability Conference (HSC) is a global gathering of leaders and changemakers from governments, international organizations, businesses, civil society, and academia. Together, they co-create innovative solutions for a sustainable and fair future. The next conference is scheduled for 2-3 June 2025.
