Meta Platforms Inc.: 10-K Risk Factor Changes

We incur significant expenses in operating our business, and we expect our expenses to continue to increase in the future as we continue to invest in new and unproven technologies, including AI and machine learning, as we broaden our user base, as users increase the amount and types of content they consume and the data they share with us, for example with respect to video, as we develop and implement new products, as we market new and existing products and promote our brands, as we continue to expand our technical infrastructure, and as we continue our efforts to focus on privacy, safety, security, and content and advertising review and enforcement. We have previously undertaken cost reduction measures in light of a more challenging operating environment, which may adversely affect these or other business initiatives, and some of these measures have involved, and may in the future involve, up-front charges and outlays of cash to reduce certain longer-term expenses. In addition, from time to time we are subject to settlements, judgments, fines, or other monetary penalties in connection with legal and regulatory developments that may be material to our business. We have made significant investments in AI initiatives, including investments in infrastructure and headcount, including specialized technical personnel, to support our efforts to enhance our products, features, and advertising tools, as well as to develop and train our AI models, and expect to continue to increase these investments. We are also continuing to increase our investments in new platforms and technologies, including as part of our VR, Horizon, and wearables efforts. Some of these investments, particularly our significant investments in Reality Labs, have generated only limited revenue and reduced our operating margin and profitability, and we expect the adverse financial impact of such investments to continue for the foreseeable future. For example, our investments in Reality Labs reduced our 2025 overall operating profit by approximately $19.19 billion, and we expect our 2026 Reality Labs operating losses to remain similar to 2025. If our investments are not successful longer-term, our business and financial performance will be harmed. Our ability to support these investments is dependent on generating sufficient profits from other areas of our business. From time to time we may also seek to raise additional capital through debt, equity, or other financing arrangements to support our business operations, strategic initiatives, or other corporate purposes. Such financings may not be available on favorable terms or at all. The incurrence of additional debt also results in increased fixed obligations and interest expense, while the issuance of additional equity securities results in dilution to our stockholders. If we are unable to obtain adequate financing when needed, our ability to finance our business operations and initiatives could be adversely affected.

We incur significant expenses in operating our business, and we expect our expenses to continue to increase in the future as we broaden our user base, as users increase the amount and types of content they consume and the data they share with us, for example with respect to video, as we develop and implement new products, as we market new and existing products and promote our brands, as we continue to expand our technical infrastructure, as we continue to invest in new and unproven technologies, including AI and machine learning, and as we continue our efforts to focus on privacy, safety, security, and content and advertising review and enforcement. We have previously undertaken cost reduction measures in light of a more challenging operating environment, which may adversely affect these or other business initiatives, and some of these measures have involved, and may in the future involve, up-front charges and outlays of cash to reduce certain longer- 27 27 27 Table of Contents Table of Contents term expenses. In addition, from time to time we are subject to settlements, judgments, fines, or other monetary penalties in connection with legal and regulatory developments that may be material to our business. We are also continuing to increase our investments in new platforms and technologies, including as part of our metaverse and wearables efforts. Some of these investments, particularly our significant investments in Reality Labs, have generated only limited revenue and reduced our operating margin and profitability, and we expect the adverse financial impact of such investments to continue for the foreseeable future. For example, our investments in Reality Labs reduced our 2024 overall operating profit by approximately $17.73 billion, and we expect our Reality Labs investments and operating losses to increase in 2025. If our investments are not successful longer-term, our business and financial performance will be harmed.

Companies in the internet, technology, and media industries own large numbers of patents, copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets, and frequently enter into litigation based on allegations of infringement, misappropriation, or other violations of intellectual property or other rights, including in novel areas such as those relating to AI training and AI outputs. In addition, various "non-practicing entities" that own patents and other intellectual property rights often attempt to aggressively assert their rights in order to extract value from technology companies. Furthermore, from time to time we may introduce or acquire new products, including in areas where we historically have not competed, or introduce new features for existing products, 45 45 45 Table of Contents Table of Contents which could increase our exposure to intellectual property claims from competitors, non-practicing entities, and other rights holders. From time to time, we receive notice from patent, copyright, and trademark holders and other parties alleging that certain of our products and services, trademarks, or user content, infringe their intellectual property rights or that certain employees may have misappropriated trade secrets from their former employers. We presently are involved in a number of intellectual property lawsuits, and as we face increasing competition and develop new products and services, we expect the number of intellectual property claims against us to grow. For example, we and other companies are, and expect to continue to be, the subject of litigation in the United States, Europe, Canada, and elsewhere alleging copyright infringement in connection with the acquisition, distribution, and use of copyrighted materials for AI training as well as potential reproduction of copyrighted materials in AI outputs, including cases addressing the applicability of the fair use defense in the United States. There can be no assurances that favorable final outcomes will be obtained in these cases. In addition, plaintiffs may seek, and we may become subject to, preliminary or provisional rulings in the course of any such litigation, including potential preliminary injunctions requiring us to change or cease some or all of our operations. We may decide to settle such lawsuits and disputes on terms that are unfavorable to us. Similarly, if any litigation to which we are a party is resolved adversely, we may be subject to an unfavorable judgment that may not be reversed upon appeal. The terms of such a settlement or judgment may require us to change or cease some or all of our operations or pay substantial amounts to the other parties, including statutory damages to large numbers of copyright holders. For certain jurisdictions, including the United States, statutory damages for copyright liability are calculated on a per work basis, which may result in substantial damages, particularly given the large volumes of data required to train AI models. In addition, we may have to seek a license to continue practices found to be in violation of a third party's rights, which may not be available on reasonable terms, or at all, and may significantly increase our operating costs and expenses. As a result, we may also be required to develop alternative non-infringing technology or practices, or branding or discontinue the practices or branding. The development of alternative non-infringing technology, branding or practices could require significant effort and expense, could result in less effective technology, branding or practices or otherwise negatively affect the user experience, or may not be feasible. We have experienced unfavorable outcomes in such disputes and litigation in the past, and our business, financial condition, and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected as a result of an unfavorable resolution of the disputes and litigation referred to above.

Companies in the internet, technology, and media industries own large numbers of patents, copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets, and frequently enter into litigation based on allegations of infringement, misappropriation, or other violations of intellectual property or other rights. In addition, various "non-practicing entities" that own patents and other intellectual property rights often attempt to aggressively assert their rights in order to extract value from technology companies. Furthermore, from time to time we may introduce or acquire new products, including in areas where we historically have not competed, or introduce new features for existing products, which could increase our exposure to intellectual property claims from competitors, non-practicing entities, and other rights holders. From time to time, we receive notice from patent, copyright, and trademark holders and other parties alleging that certain of our products and services, trademarks, or user content, infringe their intellectual property rights. We presently are involved in a number of intellectual property lawsuits, and as we face increasing competition and develop new products and services, we expect the number of intellectual property claims against us to grow. Defending intellectual property litigation is often costly and can impose a significant burden on management and employees, and there can be no assurances that favorable final outcomes will be obtained in all cases. In addition, plaintiffs may seek, and we may become subject to, preliminary or provisional rulings in the course of any such litigation, including potential preliminary injunctions requiring us 46 46 46 Table of Contents Table of Contents to change or cease some or all of our operations. We may decide to settle such lawsuits and disputes on terms that are unfavorable to us. Similarly, if any litigation to which we are a party is resolved adversely, we may be subject to an unfavorable judgment that may not be reversed upon appeal. The terms of such a settlement or judgment may require us to change or cease some or all of our operations or pay substantial amounts to the other party. In addition, we may have to seek a license to continue practices found to be in violation of a third party's rights, which may not be available on reasonable terms, or at all, and may significantly increase our operating costs and expenses. As a result, we may also be required to develop alternative non-infringing technology or practices, or branding or discontinue the practices or branding. The development of alternative non-infringing technology, branding or practices could require significant effort and expense, could result in less effective technology, branding or practices or otherwise negatively affect the user experience, or may not be feasible. We have experienced unfavorable outcomes in such disputes and litigation in the past, and our business, financial condition, and results of operations could be adversely affected as a result of an unfavorable resolution of the disputes and litigation referred to above.

•government restrictions on access to Facebook or our other products, or other actions that impair our ability to sell or deliver advertising, in their countries; •complex and evolving U.S. and foreign privacy, data use, data combination, data protection, content and content moderation, competition, youth, safety, consumer protection, advertising, and other laws and regulations, including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), Digital Markets Act (DMA), Digital Services Act (DSA), UK Online Safety Act (OSA), Artificial Intelligence Act (EU AI Act), and the UK Digital Markets, Competition and Consumer Act (DMCC); •the impact of government investigations, enforcement actions, and settlements, including litigation and investigations by privacy, consumer protection, and competition authorities, among others; 12 12 12 Table of Contents Table of Contents •our ability to comply with regulatory and legislative privacy requirements, including our consent order with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC);

•government restrictions on access to Facebook or our other products, or other actions that impair our ability to sell or deliver advertising, in their countries; •complex and evolving U.S. and foreign privacy, data use, data combination, data protection, content and content moderation, competition, youth, safety, consumer protection, advertising, and other laws and regulations, including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), Digital Markets Act (DMA), Digital Services Act (DSA), Artificial Intelligence Act (EU AI Act), and the UK Digital Markets, Competition and Consumer Act (DMCC); •the impact of government investigations, enforcement actions, and settlements, including litigation and investigations by privacy, consumer protection, and competition authorities, among others; 14 14 14 Table of Contents Table of Contents •our ability to comply with regulatory and legislative privacy requirements, including our consent order with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC);

We have made and are continuing to make investments to enable creators to contribute engaging third-party content to our platform and developers to build, grow, and monetize applications that integrate with our products. From time to time we make product changes and offer tools to promote creative content on our platform, but we may not be successful in obtaining or attracting engaging third-party content. In addition, existing and prospective developers may not be successful in building, growing, or monetizing applications that create and maintain user engagement. Developers may also choose to build on other platforms, including platforms controlled by third parties, rather than building products that integrate with our products. We are continuously seeking to balance the distribution objectives of our developers with our desire to provide an optimal user experience, and we may not be successful in achieving a balance that continues to attract and retain such developers. For 21 21 21 Table of Contents Table of Contents example, from time to time, we have taken actions to reduce the volume of communications from these developers to users on our products with the objective of enhancing the user experience, and such actions have reduced distribution from, user engagement with, and our monetization opportunities from, applications integrated with our products. In addition, as part of our efforts related to privacy, safety, and security, we conduct investigations and audits of platform applications from time to time, and we also have announced several product changes that restrict developer access to certain user data. In some instances, these actions, as well as other actions to enforce our policies applicable to developers, have adversely affected, or will adversely affect, our relationships with developers. If we are not successful in our efforts to maintain or grow engaging third-party content on our platform or the number of developers that choose to build products that integrate with our products, or if we are unable to continue to build and maintain good relations with such developers, our user growth and user engagement and our financial results may be adversely affected.

We have made and are continuing to make investments to enable developers to build, grow, and monetize applications that integrate with our products. Such existing and prospective developers may not be successful in building, growing, or monetizing applications that create and maintain user engagement. Additionally, developers may choose to build on other platforms, including platforms controlled by third parties, rather than building products that integrate with our products. We are continuously seeking to balance the distribution objectives of our developers with our desire to provide an optimal user experience, and we may not be successful in achieving a balance that continues to attract and retain such developers. For example, from time to time, we have taken actions to reduce the volume of communications from these developers to users on our products with the objective of enhancing the user experience, and such actions have reduced distribution from, user engagement with, and our monetization opportunities from, applications integrated with our products. In addition, as part of our efforts related to privacy, safety, and security, we conduct investigations and audits of platform applications from time to time, and we also have announced several product changes that restrict developer access to certain user data. In some instances, these actions, as well as other actions to enforce our policies applicable to developers, have adversely affected, or will adversely affect, our relationships with developers. If we are not successful in our efforts to maintain or grow the number of developers that choose to build products that integrate with our products or if we are unable to continue to build and maintain good relations with such developers, our user growth and user engagement and our financial results may be adversely affected.