Metta
acquires 'MultBook', a human-less social platform with only AI bots
Meta, the
company that owns one of the world's most popular social media platforms, has
acquired a new platform that is not for humans but for bots. According to CNN,
the company said in a statement on Tuesday that it has acquired Moltbook, a
social media network where AI agents communicate with each other autonomously.
Meta is
currently competing with rivals including OpenAI for not only talent but also
consumer attention.
As
artificial intelligence enters more areas of American life, tech companies are
scrambling to determine how they can best position themselves in this emerging
technological competition.
Moltbook
became a hot topic in Silicon Valley last month, with millions of bots
registered within days of its launch.
Some experts
saw it as a major breakthrough because it showed what could be possible when AI
agents interacted with each other like humans.
However,
some critics warned against it, calling it fraught with fake agents,
low-quality AI content and security concerns.
Meta’s
acquisition of the platform comes weeks after OpenAI acquired the founder of
the technology behind Moltbook.
The
technology is an AI agent system called OpenClaw. Moltbook’s team will now be
part of Meta’s Superintelligence Labs. According to a Meta spokesperson,
Moltbook’s approach “opens up new ways for AI agents to work for people and
businesses.”
OpenAI CEO
Sam Altman played down the excitement surrounding Moltbook last month, saying
the real breakthrough lies in OpenClaw, an open-source autonomous AI agent that
powers the platform’s bots. Altman wrote that he expects the technology to
become a core part of OpenAI’s products.
Meta also
acquired AI agent startup Manus in December and has made several key hires to
bolster its superintelligence team. The company invested $14.3 billion in Scale
AI last year and added its CEO to its team.
However,
Meta, like other big tech companies, is facing pressure to prove that its AI
investments can be profitable, especially at a time when OpenAI, Anthropic and
Google are constantly introducing new and improved models for their chatbots.
Meta CEO
Mark Zuckerberg said on an earnings call in January that the company would
release its new AI models in the coming months.
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