Shares in Meta Platforms (META) fell fractionally on Wednesday morning following reports suggesting that the American tech giant is mulling over switching to a closed-source AI model strategy for financial advantage.
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Insiders told Bloomberg that Meta’s upcoming Avocado AI model might be floated as a “closed” system, toeing the line of rivals such as Alphabet’s Google (GOOGL) and OpenAI (PC:OPAIQ). The goal is to make the model more monetizable by selling access to it.
The reported strategy would represent a clear break from founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s well-known push for open-source AI.
Meta Taps Third-Parties for Upcoming AI Model
The outlet noted that TBD Lab — one of the four groups comprising the AI unit Meta Superintelligence Labs — is adopting models from several third parties to develop its new model. This includes Chinese internet giant Alibaba (BABA).
The report adds to rumors that Meta has pushed back the release date for the model to early 2026. Earlier in the year, reports indicated that Meta had talks with Google and startup OpenAI about deploying their AI models.
Meta’s launch of its own Llama 4 AI model in April had been met with disappointment from developers, according to insider reports. However, insiders have also indicated that the American tech heavyweight is planning to release a new version of the Llama AI model by the end of the year. The newer version is internally called either Llama 4.X or Llama 4.5.
Meta has been pouring billions of dollars into expanding its AI talent lineup, including poaching top researchers from rivals such as OpenAI. In June, the Silicon Valley company paid $14.3 billion for a 49% stake in Alexandr Wang’s Scale AI, an AI data-labeling startup.
Is Meta a Good Stock to Buy Now?
Turning to Wall Street, Meta Platforms’ shares have a Strong Buy consensus rating based on 36 Buys, six Holds, and one Sell issued by 43 analysts over the past three months.
At $823.06, the average META price target implies approximately 28% growth potential from the current trading levels.
