Which company launched Facebook in 2004 and later changed its corporate name to Meta?

Meta Platforms is the company that launched Facebook in 2004 and later changed its corporate name to Meta.

Facebook began at Harvard University in February 2004, created by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow students Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Moskovitz and Chris Hughes. It expanded beyond Harvard to other universities and then to the general public.

The parent company was originally called Facebook, Inc. On October 28, 2021, it announced the name change to Meta Platforms, Inc. The rebranding reflected a strategy focused not only on Facebook but also on virtual and augmented reality, including the company’s Reality Labs division.

Facebook remains a social-networking product within Meta rather than the name of the whole corporation. Meta also owns Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger. A common mix-up is treating Meta as a separate social network; Meta is the parent company, while Facebook is one of its major services.