Dan Ives Calls Meta Muse A ‘Game Changer,’ Sees Apple As AI ‘Toll Collector’ In AI Arms Race

In an interview with CNBC, Ives said Meta’s roughly 3.5 billion users across its platforms give it a significant existing audience for consumer AI products.

• According to Ives, the AI race will extend beyond OpenAI and Anthropic.
• He stated that established technology companies such as Meta and Apple are able to leverage their user bases and resources to their advantage in the ‘AI Arms Race’.
• Ives estimated that the industry is only about 15% of the way through the AI spending that will ultimately be required, with the chip market potentially taking until 2028 or 2029 to reach equilibrium.

Yorkville Ives partner Dan Ives said on Tuesday that Meta Platforms (META) and Apple (AAPL) could help drive the next phase of the artificial intelligence boom by bringing AI deeper into the consumer market.

In an interview with CNBC, Ives called Meta’s Muse AI a “game changer” and said investors had underestimated what Meta could accomplish despite the billions of dollars it has been spending on AI infrastructure.

He also saw Apple as another major beneficiary as AI moves into the consumer market. “It’s a huge benefit for ultimately Apple because Apple really is ... the toll collector on the consumer AI highway,” he said.

META stock edged 0.5% higher in midday trade, with retail sentiment on Stocktwits around the company shifting to ‘bullish’ from ‘bearish’ territory over the past day. AAPL stock moved 0.7% higher, paring gains after hitting a record high above $345 in intraday trading, while retail sentiment remained in the ‘bearish’ zone.

According to Ives, Meta and Apple demonstrate why established technology companies should not be dismissed simply because they were not first to a particular AI market. “It’s not just going to be OpenAI and Anthropic,” Ives said. “I think this just shows this is an AI arms race.”

Meta’s User Base Gives It A Consumer AI Advantage

For Ives, Meta’s advantage is its massive consumer reach. The company has about 3.5 billion users across its platforms, giving it an existing audience for AI products without having to build a consumer base from scratch. 

“I think investors discounted Zuckerberg and Meta in terms of the 10s of billions that they were spending,” Ives said. “Now look at it.”

He added that Muse could also help move AI beyond early adopters and enterprise users by giving consumers a more familiar way to interact with the technology. “This is for the average consumer,” Ives said, adding that users who are not ready to adopt products from companies such as Anthropic may be more willing to use AI through platforms they already know.

Ives Sees AI Spending Extending Into 2028 And Beyond

Ives also pushed back on the idea that the AI opportunity has already been fully priced into technology stocks. He estimated that the industry is only about 15% of the way through the spending that will ultimately be required, with the chip market potentially taking until 2028 or 2029 to reach equilibrium.

“When you count Meta out, you count Apple out, look what these stocks are doing,” Ives said. “Because when you have the install bases and the resources and the engineers, you could be late, but with an install base like that, you’re going to be a winner.”

Ives added the impact could eventually spread across chips, software and infrastructure as consumer adoption adds to enterprise demand.

For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com.<