04/21/2025
Meta is on trial in the United States in a legal battle that could see the social media giant being forced to sell off its companies Instagram and WhatsApp.
CEO Mark Zuckerberg took to the stand this week to argue that Meta’s purchase of the two platforms did not break competition rules.
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Meta’s antitrust trial: Everything you need to know about the case and Zuckerberg’s testimony
For your information.
Written by Brooklyn Kiosow on 8/3/2023.
Mark Zuckerberg is best known for founding Facebook, now known as Meta, but he’s had his hand in many well-known businesses over the years. Most recently, he debuted Threads, a new social networking platform closely associated with Instagram.
Zuckerberg once said, “By giving people the power to share, we’re making the world more transparent.” He continues to back this theory, as many of his businesses connect people worldwide.
As an emblem of entrepreneurship, Zuckerberg owns many companies, many of which were acquired by Facebook/Meta. This is the complete list.
1. Meta
Meta is the overarching company of many of Zuckerberg’s current ventures. Facebook officially changed its name to Meta in 2021 to better represent its venture into the metaverse.
Some people believe Zuckerberg is “the father of the metaverse,” as Meta was one of the first large-scale shifts to a new iteration of the internet. According to Zuckerberg, the metaverse isn’t something a company can just build; it’s “the next chapter of the internet overall.”
As the world’s largest social media platform, Meta is currently worth $800 billion. Zuckerberg owns 12% of the company’s stock.
Companies Owned by Meta
These are all of the companies owned by Meta.
2. Facebook
While attending Harvard University, Zuckerberg and three of his classmates built the social media site that was eventually coined Facebook. Founded in 2004, Facebook was an instant hit. The early days of Facebook’s creation are represented in the hit movie The Social Network.
Facebook is the most profitable company under Meta and has nearly three billion monthly active users.
3. Threads
The newest venture under Meta is Threads, an app launched on July 5, 2023, and built by the Instagram team for sharing text. According to a Meta press release, the company wants Threads to expand on what Instagram does best but with text to create a positive space for people to express their ideas.
To join Threads, users have to have an Instagram account. In the future, the company plans to make Threads compatible with ActivityPub, a social networking protocol created by the World Wide Web Consortium to make Threads interoperable with other apps, which is something many other social networking sites don’t offer.
The app drew 10 million users just seven hours after launch. Zuckerberg said he thinks it could be bigger than Twitter. There are currently around 23 million active users on the platform.
4. AI.Reverie
To support its metaverse developing efforts, Meta purchased AI.Reverie in late 2021. The New York-based company developed a pattern for the creation of synthetic training datasets that can be used to develop artificial intelligence (AI) models.
Synthetic data has trended over the last few years as companies embrace digital transformation. According to a 2021 survey, 89% of technology executives said synthetic data is essential for remaining competitive.
Before being acquired by Meta, the platform was used in the agriculture, retail, and industrial sector. The financial details of the purchase weren’t disclosed.
5. Novi
Just one year after the 2021 launch of Novi, its crypto payment wallet, Meta announced it was pulling the plug. According to a press release, Novi was “a new way to send money, and [its] new visual identity and design represent the fluid movement of digital currencies.”
According to a CoinDesk article, Meta revealed last year it has other plans for the digital wallet technology, specifically related to the metaverse. Details have yet to emerge.
Meta and Facebook’s Most-Talked-About Companies
Facebook owns many companies, but these are the most talked about.
6. Instagram
While Zuckerberg isn’t the founder of Instagram, Facebook acquired it just two years after its inception in 2012, making Meta the current owner. It was a smart move, as the company paid just $1 billion for the photo- and video-sharing platform that now has more than 2.3 billion active users and is worth around $102 billion.
According to the company’s website, the platform aims to “give people the power to build community and bring the world closer together.”
The founders of Instagram, Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger, initially stayed on as CEO and head of engineering, respectively, but have since gone on to other ventures.
7. WhatsApp
WhatsApp is used by billions of people worldwide as a reliable messaging service. Founded in 2009 and acquired by Facebook in 2014, it was one of the largest tech purchases in history. Facebook paid more than $21 billion for the messaging app, which hugely surpassed some of the other big purchases at the time, including Google’s $3 billion purchase of Nest Labs.
It remains one of the most popular messaging apps in 2023, with 2.2 billion users.
8. CTRL-Labs
In 2019, Facebook acquired CTRL-Labs for between $500 million and $1 billion. The neural interface startup created a wristband capable of transmitting electrical signals from the brain into a computer.
The purpose of the CTRL-Labs wristband is to improve the ways humans interact with machines so that they may no longer need to use physical controllers such as a mouse and keyboard. This acquisition marked a substantial hardware investment by Facebook, which is using the technology in its augmented and virtual reality projects.
9. Onavo
Founded in 2010, the mobile web analytics platform Onavo was acquired by Facebook in 2013 to monitor competitors. The platform influenced a number of business decisions, including its acquisition of WhatsApp.
However, after pressure from Apple, Facebook pulled Onavo from the iOS Apple Store in 2018 because it had violated privacy laws by collecting data from other apps on users’ devices. In 2019, Facebook completely sunset the analytics platform.
10. Beluga
In 2011, Facebook launched its messaging platform, Facebook Messenger. It was thanks to its acquisition of Beluga, a messaging app service founded in 2010 and acquired in 2011, that Messenger was so successful.
Facebook used Beluga’s technology to create Messenger as a tool for easy group communication that’s private and instant. Facebook acquired both the service and the team — all ex-Google employees — for between $10 billion and $15 billion.
11. Oculus VR
In 2014, Facebook bought Oculus VR, a virtual reality (VR) company specializing in VR headsets. After a decade-long pursuit of its virtual reality universe, Facebook paid $2 billion for the company.
When Meta announced in 2021 that it was retiring the Oculus name and changing it to Meta Quest, some consumers were confused because during a conference about the company’s name change from Facebook to Meta, Zuckerberg said that its apps and brands weren’t going to change. Despite the change in name, the two headsets — Oculus Quest and Meta Quest — are the same.
12. LiveRail
When Facebook acquired LiveRail for $400 million to $500 million in 2014, the social networking site said it would “help [them] make video advertising much better for everyone.”
Founded in 2007, LiveRail was a video supply-side platform. The platform was used by publishers like A+E Networks and Dailymotion to connect with advertisers using an automated bidding process.
Two years after acquiring it, Facebook shuttered the service, saying it wanted to “focus on finding better ways for publishers to sell their ad space directly to advertisers.”
13. Mapillary
In 2020, Facebook announced it was acquiring Sweden-based Mapillary, a big-time player in the mapping world and one of the highest-profile geospatial startups of its time. Launched in 2013, Mapillary’s mission was to solve an expensive problem in mapping: keeping maps up to date on street-level data in a way that rivaled Google Street View.
Jan Erik Solem, the CEO of Mapillary, said Facebook would use the company’s technology to power Facebook Marketplace, break into augmented reality, and optimize virtual reality headsets. The financial details of the acquisition weren’t disclosed.
14. tbh
In 2017, tbh, an anonymous social media app targeted toward high school students, was ranked #1 in the U.S. Apple App Store. That same year, Facebook acquired the company for $100 million. The purchase happened just 73 days after launch due to the product’s breakthrough success.
However, just one year later, in 2018, Facebook announced it was shutting down the company due to low usage. In 2022, tbh was relaunched by one of the original creators, renamed Gas, and acquired by Discord earlier this year.
15. Vidpresso
In a bid to keep up with popular video platforms like Twitch, YouTube, and Snapchat, Facebook acquired Vidpresso’s technology and team in 2018 for an undisclosed amount. Vidpresso launched in 2016 with the goal of making it simple for broadcasters, podcasters, and event producers to use social media in their live productions.
While Facebook didn’t acquire the full company, it did purchase its innovative technology and seven-person team to optimize its Facebook Live feature and make it more interactive. The technology behind Vidpresso allows Facebook Live to display social media polls and comments on the screen.
16. Atlas Solutions
In 2013, Facebook acquired Microsoft’s Atlas Advertiser Suite to help advertisers “close the loop” and “understand how their spend earns them money.” Microsoft originally purchased Atlas for $6.2 billion from aQuantive, but Facebook paid between $50 million to $100 million for it from Microsoft.
The platform was built for advertisers to plan campaigns, buy ads on sites across the World Wide Web, and track engagement. According to an executive from Facebook, the purchase came after hearing advertiser complaints: “We heard loud and clear from advertisers that they want to understand multi-touch attribution instead of just looking at the last click.”
Not only did Facebook gain clients through the deal, but advertisers who worked with the social network gained a more expansive view of their marketing campaigns. The company was also able to track how often offsite ads lead to purchases.
In 2016, Facebook retired Atlas Solutions.
17. Ascenta
To deliver internet access to unconnected parts of the world, Zuckerberg announced that Facebook would acquire the engineering team behind the U.K.-based solar-powered drone maker Ascenta for $20 million. Zuckerberg posted on his personal Facebook, saying the purchase comes as Facebook has been “working on ways to beam internet to people from the sky.”
Using the company’s technology, Facebook pioneered Connectivity Lab, part of its Internet.org project, in partnership with telecom industry giants like Nokia. The purchase gave Facebook the means to use air and space-born methods to bring the internet to more than five billion people. It was also built to compete with Google’s Project Loon.
While Facebook tested its internet drone project coined Project Aquila in 2016 with success, it halted the project in 2018 and gave up on building internet drones internally.
18. Little Eye Labs
Indian startup Little Eye Labs, a software tool for analyzing the performance of Android apps, was acquired by Facebook in 2014 for between $10 million and $15 million. The CEO of the company said it wanted to build a product that focused on “solving problems for a new generation of mobile app developers.”
The purchase was powered by Facebook’s strong ambitions to keep up with competitor Twitter in terms of mobile development and device access.
19. ProtoGeo
In 2014, Facebook also acquired Finland-based ProtoGeo, the company behind a smart activity-tracking app. Moves tracks a user’s daily activity via the phone’s accelerometer. It works in the background to track a user’s phone use and movement.
With the purchase, ProtoGeo remained a standalone application, but key members of the Moves team joined Facebook. However, the company was discontinued in 2018.
A Philanthropic Venture by Zuckerberg
20. Chan Zuckerberg Initiative
One of Zuckerberg’s most philanthropic ventures is the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. Zuckerberg founded the initiative in 2015 with his wife, Priscilla Chan, to solve some of the world’s greatest challenges. According to the company’s website, the company’s mission is to build an inclusive and healthy future for everyone.
The initiative primarily focuses on three segments: science, education, and community. In science, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative fosters collaboration between scientists and engineers to develop new technologies and further scientific research. In education, the venture works to ensure that every student has access to an education and that teachers have the tools they need. The initiative also works with local communities in California to combat housing affordability and homelessness.
The couple has invested 99% of their Facebook shares over their lifetime.
More Facebook Companies
- Parakeya was acquired in 2007 and has since shuttered
- ConnectU was acquired in 2008 and shuttered in 2008
- FriendFeed was acquired in 2009 and shuttered in 2015
- Octazen was acquired in 2010 and has since shuttered
- Divvyshot was acquired in 2010 and has since shuttered
- Friendster was acquired in 2010 and shuttered in 2015
- ShareGrove was acquired in 2010 and has since shuttered, but the technology is still active through Facebook
- Nextstop was acquired in 2010 and shuttered in 2010
- Chai Labs was acquired in 2010 and has since shuttered
- Hot Potato was acquired in 2010 and shuttered in 2010
- Drop.io was acquired in 2010 and shuttered in 2011
- Rel8tion was acquired in 2011 and has since shuttered, but the technology is still active through Facebook
- Snaptu was acquired in 2011 and has since shuttered, but the technology is still active through Facebook
- RecRec was acquired in 2011 and there is no information on its current status
- DayTum was acquired in 2011 and there is no information on its current status
- Sofa was acquired in 2011 and shuttered in 2011
- MailRank was acquired in 2011 and has since shuttered, but the technology is still active through Facebook
- Push Pop Press was acquired in 2011 and has since shuttered
- Friend.ly was acquired in 2011 and shuttered in 2011
- Strobe was acquired in 2011 and there is no information on its current status
- Gowalla was acquired in 2011 and has since shuttered, but the technology is still active through Facebook
- Tagtile was acquired in 2012 and has since shuttered, but the technology is still active through Facebook
- Glancee was acquired in 2012 and has since shuttered but the technology is still active through Facebook
- Lightbox.com was acquired in 2012 and has since shuttered
- Karma was acquired in 2012 and has since shuttered
- Face.com was acquired in 2012 and has since shuttered but the technology is still active through Facebook
- Spool was acquired in 2012 and has since shuttered, but the technology is still active through Facebook
- Acrylic Software was acquired in 2012 and has since shuttered, but the technology is still active through Facebook
- Threadsy was acquired in 2012 and has since shuttered
- Osmeta was acquired in 2013 and has since shuttered
- Hot Studio was acquired in 2013 and is still active
- Spaceport was acquired in 2013 and has since shuttered
- Parse was acquired in 2013 and has since shuttered, but the technology is still active through Facebook
- Monoidics was acquired in 2013 and has since shuttered
- Jibbigo was acquired in 2013 and has since shuttered
- SportStream was acquired in 2013 and has since shuttered, but the technology is still active through Facebook
- Branch was acquired in 2014 and has since shuttered
- Pryte was acquired in 2014 and has since shuttered
- PrivateCore was acquired in 2014 and has since shuttered
- WaveGroup Sound was acquired in 2014 and has since shuttered, but the technology is still active through Facebook
- Wit.ai was acquired in 2015 and is still active as an open-source platform via Facebook
- Quickfire was acquired in 2015 and has since shuttered
- TheFind was acquired in 2015 and shuttered in 2015
- Surreal Vision was acquired in 2015 and is still active via Facebook’s Oculus
- Pebbles was acquired in 2015 and is still active via Facebook’s Oculus
- Masquerade was acquired in 2016 and shuttered in 2020
- Two Big Ears was acquired in 2016 and has since shuttered
- Nascent Objects was acquired in 2016 and was part of Facebook’s Building 8 lab but has since shuttered
- InfiniLED was acquired in 2016 and is still active via Facebook’s Oculus
- CrowdTangle was acquired in 2016 and shuttered in 2022
- Faciometrics was acquired in 2016 and has since shuttered
- Ozlo was acquired in 2017 and is still active
- Fayteq was acquired in 2017 and has since shuttered, but the technology is still active through Facebook
- confirm.io was acquired in 2018 and has since shuttered, but the technology is still active through Facebook
- Bloomsbury AI was acquired in 2018 and has since shuttered but continues to offer an open-source platform
- RedKix was acquired in 2018 and has since shuttered
- Chainspace was acquired in 2019 and has since shuttered
- GROKSTYLE was acquired in 2019 and has since shuttered, but the technology is still active via Facebook Marketplace
- Sonics was acquired in 2019 and has since shuttered
- Servicefriend was acquired in 2019 and has since shuttered alongside Facebook’s Novi
- Packagd was acquired in 2019 and was shuttered in 2022
- Beat Games was acquired in 2019 and is still active
- PlayGiga was acquired in 2019 and has since shuttered
- Sanzaru Games was acquired in 2019 and is still active via Facebook’s Oculus
- Scape Technologies was acquired in 2020 and is still active
- Ready at Dawn was acquired in 2020 and is still active
- Lemnis Technologies was acquired in 2020 and is still active
- Kustomer was acquired in 2020 and is still active
- Downpour Interactive was acquired in 2021 and is still active
- Unit 2 Games was acquired in 2021 and is still active
- BigBox VR was acquired in 2021 and is still active
- Twisted Pixel Games was acquired in 2022 and is still active via Facebook’s Oculus
- Armature Studios was acquired in 2022 and is still active via Facebook’s Oculus
- Camouflaj was acquired in 2022 and is still active via Facebook’s Oculus
- Within was acquired in 2023 and is still active
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