META

Meta Platforms, Inc.

A company behind many of the world's most-used apps—Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, and Threads—that makes nearly all its money from advertising, and also builds virtual-reality headsets, AI glasses, and its Meta AI assistant. It began in 2004 as a Harvard dorm project called "TheFacebook," launched by Mark Zuckerberg and his roommates, and in 2021 the parent company renamed itself Meta to signal its focus on building a connected digital "metaverse," keeping the Facebook app's name unchanged.