Meta’s stock plummeted nearly 17% in four days after announcing up to $72 billion in AI capital spending, erasing $307 billion in market value.

Investors fear massive artificial intelligence outlays mirror costly metaverse spending, drawing parallels between long-dated projects lacking immediate payback and unclear returns.

Unlike Microsoft and other tech peers with enterprise cloud businesses, Meta must rely solely on advertising to monetize its AI investments.

The huge checks Meta Platforms Inc. is writing to support its artificial intelligence ambitions are reminding some investors of the massive metaverse outlays that crippled the stock just a few years ago.

Facebook’s parent posted results last week that beat expectations on key metrics. But Wall Street’s focus was on capital expe

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