Washington, D.C. – Former U.S. President Donald Trump has reached a $25 million legal settlement with social media giant Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, resolving a lawsuit over his 2021 account suspension following the January 6 Capitol riots.
The settlement, first reported by the Wall Street Journal, will see $22 million allocated to Trump’s presidential library fund, with the remainder covering legal fees and other plaintiffs who joined the lawsuit. Meta will not admit wrongdoing as part of the agreement.
Trump’s Social Media Battle with Meta
Trump sued Meta and its CEO Mark Zuckerberg in 2021, arguing that his suspension from Facebook and Instagram was unjust and politically motivated. The company initially banned Trump’s accounts for two years, citing concerns over public safety after the Capitol riots.
Despite lingering tensions, Meta lifted the final restrictions on Trump’s accounts in July 2024, ahead of the U.S. presidential election. The settlement signals a significant de-escalation between Trump and Meta, following years of sharp criticism from the former president.
Trump, who previously labeled Facebook as “anti-Trump”, went as far as calling it an “enemy of the people” in March 2024. However, relations appear to have thawed in recent months, with Zuckerberg visiting Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort after his 2024 election victory.
In December, Meta donated $1 million to Trump’s inauguration fund, and Zuckerberg attended Trump’s inauguration ceremony earlier this month, sitting alongside top global tech leaders.
Trump’s Social Media Presence and the Role of X
While Meta initially banned Trump, Twitter—now rebranded as X—permanently suspended his account in 2021. However, after Elon Musk acquired the platform for $44 billion, he reinstated Trump’s account in 2022 following a user poll.
Trump has since maintained an active presence on X, though he continues to favor his own platform, Truth Social, for major announcements.
Meta’s AI Investment and DeepSeek Competition
The settlement comes as Meta faces mounting competition in artificial intelligence (AI), particularly from China’s rising AI app, DeepSeek.
On Wednesday, Meta defended its $65 billion AI investment, even as tech stocks plummeted following DeepSeek’s rapid rise in popularity. Meta, however, bucked the trend, with its stock rising in after-hours trading after posting strong financial results.
Zuckerberg acknowledged DeepSeek’s impact but downplayed concerns. “There’s a lot to learn, but it’s too soon to have a strong opinion on what this means for AI’s future,” he told investors.
Meta’s Push for Open-Source AI
Unlike many U.S. tech firms, Meta has taken a unique approach by open-sourcing its AI models, making them freely available to developers.
“There’s going to be an open-source standard globally, and it’s important that it’s an American standard,” Zuckerberg said, emphasizing the need for U.S. dominance in AI development.
Meta’s AI spending has been a key focus, with Zuckerberg arguing that large-scale infrastructure investments will be a major competitive advantage.
“For a company serving billions of people, this kind of investment makes sense,” he said, dismissing concerns over high expenditures.
The Future of Meta: Smart Glasses and Facebook’s Relevance
Beyond AI, Meta is betting big on smart glasses, with Zuckerberg predicting that all glasses will be replaced by smart technology within a decade.
He also addressed concerns over Facebook’s declining popularity compared to Instagram and TikTok, vowing to revive the platform’s cultural relevance.
Additionally, Zuckerberg defended Meta’s decision to end fact-checking, arguing that community-based moderation tools would be more effective. He assured investors that advertiser demand remained strong, despite the policy shift.
Financial Performance
Meta reported $48 billion in revenue in the final quarter of 2024, a 21% increase year-over-year. Despite high AI spending, the company posted a $20 billion profit, up 49% from the previous year.
With AI investment surging and competition heating up, Meta remains at the center of the evolving tech landscape, even as it works to repair its once-hostile relationship with Donald Trump.
