Meta launches paid subscriptions with expanded AI features across its apps

Saturday 19 September 2026 - 08:35

By: Azzat Manal

Meta launches paid subscriptions with expanded AI features across its apps

Meta is expanding its subscription business with a new paid service called Meta One, offering users enhanced access to artificial intelligence tools across Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp.

The new service is designed to move beyond subscription products aimed primarily at creators and public figures, with Meta seeking to persuade ordinary users to pay monthly for additional features and greater access to its AI capabilities.

Meta One builds on individual subscription plans introduced by the company earlier this year. Depending on the package, users can access features such as notifications about specific viewers of Instagram Stories and the ability to keep Stories available for up to 48 hours instead of the standard 24-hour period.

Subscribers to Meta One will also receive broader access to AI-powered tools for creating and editing images and generating videos through Meta's Muse models, among other capabilities. The company is positioning the service as a way to provide heavier users with higher limits and a wider range of AI functions.

The entry-level Meta One Core plan is priced at $7.99 per month and combines the benefits of the individual Plus subscriptions with expanded AI usage. Instagram Plus is available separately for $3.99 a month, while Meta One Premium costs $19.99 and offers higher AI usage limits.

Meta is also introducing several packages for content creators and businesses. The plans range from Essential at $14.99 per month to Max at $499, with higher-priced tiers offering additional business tools, greater AI access and enhanced capabilities for Meta's business agent, an AI-powered chatbot designed to interact with customers.

The move reflects Meta's broader strategy of turning artificial intelligence into a significant part of its products and revenue model. The company has been investing heavily in AI infrastructure, research and computing capacity as competition intensifies among major technology companies.

Meta is also seeking to generate new revenue streams as it continues to finance its long-term AI ambitions. At the same time, its Reality Labs division, which focuses on virtual and augmented reality technologies, has accumulated substantial losses in recent years.

By combining social networking, messaging and AI tools within paid packages, Meta is testing whether users and businesses will pay for more advanced digital experiences while the company continues to increase its investment in artificial intelligence.