On Wednesday, Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) CEO Mark Zuckerberg addressed investor concerns about the profitability of the company's growing wearables business during the third-quarter earnings, saying Meta's investment in smart glasses and augmented reality devices could eventually turn into "an extremely profitable business."
Zuckerberg Confident In Wearables Growth And Profitability
When Truist Securities analyst Youssef Squali asked if Meta expects to sell enough hardware to recoup its investment in wearables, Zuckerberg said that while the company earns revenue from device sales, the bigger opportunity lies in services and AI features layered on top.
The work on Ray-Ban Meta and the Oakley Meta product is "going very well," he said. "If these continue going as well as [they] have been, then I think it will be a very profitable investment."
Zuckerberg added that Meta's focus extends beyond hardware. "The investment here is not just to build the device. It's also to build these services on top."
"I think over time, the AI is going to become the main thing that people are using them for, and I think that’s gonna end up having a big business opportunity by itself."
Meta Eyes Long-Term Vision For AR And AI Integration
Zuckerberg also reaffirmed Meta's commitment to developing advanced augmented reality products, citing the Orion prototype unveiled at the company's Connect event last year.
"We’re also gonna keep on investing in things like the more full field of view product form of the Orion prototype that we showed at Connect last year. So those things are obviously earlier in their curve towards getting to being a sustaining business," he said.
"Our general view is that we want to build these out to reach many hundreds of millions or billions of people—and at that point, this is gonna be just an extremely profitable business."
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Meta Stock Drops After Q3 Earnings
Meta posted third-quarter diluted earnings per share of $1.05, which includes a one-time, non-cash income tax charge of $15.93 billion, making the results not directly comparable to Wall Street estimates of $6.68 per share.
The company projects fourth-quarter revenue between $56 billion and $59 billion, surpassing the $57.21 billion analyst consensus.
During the earnings call, Zuckerberg highlighted strong consumer interest in the company's next-generation wearable lineup.
He added that the 2025 AI glasses lineup — including the Ray-Ban Meta glasses and Oakley Meta Vanguards — has been "selling well," with customers praising longer battery life, improved camera quality, enhanced AI features and refined design.
Zuckerberg also revealed that Meta's new Ray-Ban display glasses and the Meta Neural Band sold out in nearly every store within 48 hours, with demo slots booked through the end of next month.
Price Action: Meta shares plunged 7.37% in after-hours trading, reaching $696.30, according to Benzinga Pro.
Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings place Meta in the 92nd percentile for stock quality — click here to see how it compares with leading peers in the industry.
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