Meta Muse launch splits US stock market — Channel NewsAsia

In the United States, the launch of Meta’s Muse app caused diverging movements in company shares: Meta’s stock and shares of companies linked to AI infrastructure rose, while shares of financial, travel and service platforms came under pressure. Channel NewsAsia reports, citing Reuters.

Muse allows users to assign an AI agent to make purchases, book travel and fill out forms. The app surpassed ChatGPT in the rankings of free apps on Apple’s App Store and Google Play in the United States and Canada. According to Sensor Tower, Muse was downloaded 2.8 million times in the two weeks after its launch, while average daily download growth during the first 10 days was 55%.

Investor concerns

Investors fear that Meta’s scale could turn Muse into a powerful price-comparison tool. In their view, this could make it easier for users to find cheaper alternatives and weaken loyalty to established service providers.

The financial sector was hit hardest in the previous trading session and remained under pressure on Wednesday. Since the start of the week, shares of JPMorgan and Wells Fargo have each lost more than 3%, while Charles Schwab has lost nearly 5%. Shares of Marsh and Arthur J. Gallagher fell by 2.4% and 4.6%, respectively. B. Riley Wealth chief market strategist Art Hogan nevertheless described concerns about such market disruption as too far removed from reality.

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Growth of Meta and technology companies

Meta shares have risen nearly 13% since the start of the week and were heading for a fifth consecutive week of gains. Truist Securities forecasts that the consumer-focused app could generate at least $28.5 billion in additional annual revenue by fiscal 2030.

US-traded shares of Canada’s Shopify rose 11.4% after the company said it was using Muse to process purchases. PayPal said it would allow users to search for products and complete purchases through the AI agent. Privately held Stripe and Ticketmaster have also entered into similar agreements with Meta.

Meanwhile, TripAdvisor and Booking Holdings have lost more than 6% since the start of the week, Planet Fitness has lost 17%, and The New York Times has lost 10%. Other companies whose shares declined included Uber, Lyft and DoorDash. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index has risen 7% since Muse’s launch, with Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices among the leading gainers.