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Instagram Reaches 3 Billion Monthly Active Users, Zuckerberg Says

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Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced on Wednesday that Instagram has grown to 3 billion monthly active users, cementing its status as one of the world’s most widely used social media platforms.

The last time Meta disclosed Instagram’s user numbers was in 2022, when the app surpassed 2 billion monthly users.

Meta, then known as Facebook, acquired Instagram in 2012 for $1 billion—a deal that was initially met with skepticism since the app was focused mainly on photo sharing and generated little revenue. Since then, Instagram has become a central part of Meta’s business, with analysts estimating it could contribute over half of the company’s U.S. ad revenue this year.

A key driver of Instagram’s rapid growth has been Reels, the short-form video feature launched in 2020, which directly competes with TikTok and YouTube Shorts.

TikTok, owned by China’s ByteDance, reported earlier this month that it has more than 1 billion monthly users worldwide, underscoring the intense competition in the short-video market.

Trump team says TikTok U.S. divestiture deal close, Oracle and Silver Lake among investors

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The White House said Monday that President Donald Trump will soon certify a deal to separate TikTok’s U.S. operations from Chinese parent ByteDance, declaring it compliant with the 2024 divestiture law.

Under the agreement, ByteDance’s stake will fall below 20%, with control shifting to a mix of existing U.S. stakeholders and new investors, including Oracle and private equity firm Silver Lake. Additional “household name” investors are expected to be announced, according to a senior official.

Key deal terms include:

  • Oracle will provide U.S.-based cloud infrastructure to store all American user data.

  • Prominent U.S. investors such as Lachlan Murdoch, Larry Ellison, and Michael Dell are expected to participate.

  • The U.S. government will not take a board seat or a “golden share” in the new entity.

  • TikTok’s U.S. assets are valued at “many billions of dollars,” though an exact figure is pending.

The Trump administration is confident Beijing has signed off on the framework, though some paperwork still needs to be finalized. China’s embassy in Washington said it welcomed “productive commercial negotiations” that respected both nations’ laws and interests.

TikTok, with 170 million American users, faced a looming ban after Congress passed a law requiring ByteDance to divest U.S. operations by January 2025. Trump previously extended enforcement to mid-December to allow negotiations. His new executive order will add another 120-day pause to give investors and ByteDance time to close the deal.

The agreement marks a rare breakthrough in strained U.S.–China trade relations and could prevent a forced shutdown of one of the world’s most popular social media platforms in America.

Trump expected to greenlight TikTok U.S. deal via executive order this week

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President Donald Trump is expected to approve a long-awaited deal to secure TikTok’s future in the U.S. through an executive order later this week, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing a senior White House official. The move would bring months of tense U.S.–China negotiations to a close and establish the legal framework for the app to continue operating in America.

The agreement requires TikTok’s U.S. assets to shift under American ownership and management. According to officials, the app’s core algorithm will be “secured, retrained, and operated in the United States outside of ByteDance’s control.”

Key details of the deal include:

  • A new U.S.-based entity will oversee TikTok operations, with a board comprised of directors experienced in national security and cybersecurity.

  • American investors—including media executive Lachlan Murdoch, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, and Dell chairman Michael Dell—will play a major role.

  • U.S. firms Oracle and Silver Lake will control about 50% of the new company.

  • Existing investors, such as Susquehanna International, will hold around 30%.

  • ByteDance’s ownership stake will drop below 20%.

To safeguard user data, all information from American TikTok accounts will be stored on U.S.-based cloud infrastructure run by Oracle.

The expected approval reflects Trump’s insistence on limiting Chinese influence over TikTok while keeping the popular video app available to its tens of millions of U.S. users.