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Report: Meta Postpones Launch of Its Massive AI Model

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Meta Platforms is postponing the release of its highly anticipated AI model, codenamed “Behemoth,” according to a report from the Wall Street Journal. Insiders familiar with the situation revealed that the company is facing challenges in enhancing the model’s performance to meet internal expectations. These difficulties have raised doubts among engineers about whether the improvements over previous iterations are substantial enough to warrant a public launch.

Initially, Meta planned to unveil Behemoth in April during its first-ever AI developer conference, aiming to showcase its cutting-edge capabilities. However, the timeline was pushed back to June as the engineering team continued refining the model. Now, the release is expected to be delayed further into the fall or beyond, signaling a cautious approach by the company as it evaluates the model’s readiness.

Meta had earlier introduced Llama 4 Behemoth as part of its AI lineup, describing it as one of the most advanced large language models (LLMs) available and a key component designed to train future AI systems. Despite this ambitious positioning, internal feedback suggests the model has not yet met the benchmarks set by Meta’s development team.

In parallel, Meta rolled out updates to its Llama series in April, releasing the Llama 4 Scout and Llama 4 Maverick models. These versions serve as more immediate enhancements while the company continues to work on finalizing the more powerful Behemoth model for eventual public release.

Meta Requests Court to Dismiss FTC’s Monopoly Allegations Due to Insufficient Evidence

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Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook, has requested a federal judge to dismiss the ongoing antitrust case brought by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The FTC alleges that Meta holds an illegal monopoly in the social media market, particularly through its acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp. However, Meta argues that the agency has failed to provide sufficient evidence to support these claims in the trial, which has been unfolding since mid-April in Washington, D.C.

The FTC’s case centers on the idea that Meta, formerly known as Facebook, unlawfully maintained its dominance by purchasing potential competitors, thereby stifling competition in the social media space. The agency seeks to reverse these acquisitions, which occurred over ten years ago, aiming to restore competition. Meta counters this by asserting that these acquisitions did not create a monopoly, and instead, the company has faced growing competition, especially from newer platforms like TikTok.

During the trial, Meta highlighted evidence showing that WhatsApp, one of its acquisitions, did not have ambitions to become a direct competitor to Facebook at the time of purchase. Furthermore, Meta presented testimony suggesting that Instagram actually experienced significant growth following its acquisition. Meta also stressed that the FTC failed to demonstrate a clear distinction between various social media apps focused on friends-and-family sharing — such as Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat — and TikTok, a platform that Meta claims has pushed it to innovate and adapt.

If the judge grants Meta’s motion to rule on the current evidence, the trial could conclude much sooner, potentially ending before June. However, the court could also decide to let the trial continue with both parties presenting further evidence. As the legal battle continues, the outcome could have significant implications for how major tech companies operate and acquire rivals in the competitive social media landscape.

UAE Launches Falcon Arabic AI Model as Gulf States Intensify Tech Race

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The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has unveiled Falcon Arabic, a new artificial intelligence (AI) model designed to process and understand the full linguistic diversity of the Arabic language. The announcement marks a strategic step in the Gulf region’s rapidly intensifying pursuit of AI dominance.

Developed by Abu Dhabi’s Advanced Technology Research Council (ATRC), Falcon Arabic is trained on a native Arabic dataset, rather than relying on translated content — a key distinction that positions it as a culturally and linguistically authentic tool for the Arab world.

“Today, AI leadership is not about scale for the sake of scale. It is about making powerful tools useful, usable, and universal,” said Faisal Al Bannai, Secretary General of ATRC.

The model is said to match the performance of others up to ten times its size, making it not only efficient but also more accessible in terms of computing power and deployment.

A Regional Arms Race in AI

The launch comes as Gulf states, particularly the UAE and Saudi Arabia, compete to establish themselves as AI powerhouses. Both countries are investing heavily in research, infrastructure, and partnerships to capitalize on the transformative potential of AI.

The UAE’s advantage lies in its strong ties with the United States. During a recent visit, former U.S. President Donald Trump highlighted a new AI agreement with the UAE that would facilitate its access to advanced AI semiconductors — a critical factor in developing high-performance AI systems.

Alongside Falcon Arabic, the UAE also introduced Falcon H1, a model designed to reduce the high computational and technical barriers typically associated with running large AI systems. ATRC claims it outperforms competitors like Meta and Alibaba, both in power consumption and required expertise.

Saudi Arabia’s Parallel Push

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia is developing its own Arabic-language AI initiatives. Earlier this month, the kingdom launched a new state-backed company tasked with creating and managing AI infrastructure. It plans to release one of the world’s most powerful multimodal Arabic language models, signaling its ambition to lead in AI not just regionally, but globally.

AI was a dominant theme during Trump’s recent visit to Riyadh as well, reinforcing the strategic priority both countries now place on technology and digital sovereignty.

With the Gulf nations now prioritizing linguistic, cultural, and technological self-sufficiency, Falcon Arabic represents more than a software release — it is part of a larger geopolitical and digital transformation strategy playing out across the region.