Meta Platforms is the parent of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp and ranks among the highest-valued companies by market capitalization.
The company operates some of the world’s largest social and messaging platforms. Its advertising business generates most of its revenue, while its Reality Labs division develops virtual-reality and augmented-reality hardware and software.
Meta was originally called Facebook, Inc. and changed its corporate name to Meta Platforms in 2021. The rebranding highlighted chief executive Mark Zuckerberg’s strategy of building the metaverse, although Facebook remained the name of the social network.
Market capitalization measures the value investors place on the company’s outstanding shares. It is separate from the number of users, advertising revenue, or the value of any single app. Meta is also distinct from ByteDance, the privately held parent of TikTok, which is not the same kind of publicly traded market-cap comparison.