Meta has big generative AI plans its advertising business, according to Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth.

In an interview with Nikkei Asia, Bosworth said the parent company of Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram is prioritizing the development generative AI for advertisers, with plans for the tech to be in use this year.

“We just created a new team, the generative AI team, a couple of months ago; they are very busy,” Bosworth said. “It’s probably the area that I’m spending the most time [in], as well as Mark Zuckerberg and [Chief Product Officer] Chris Cox.”

The new team was announced in February by Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. In a Facebook post, Zuck explained how the “top-level product group” is exploring ChatGPT-esque texting features in WhatsApp and Messenger and using AI for Instagram filters and “ad formats.”

Advertising is the main source of revenue for Meta, which is looking to bounce back after a bumpy 2022 caused by competition with TikTok and expensive projects (cough, cough Zuck’s metaverse).

AI tools to help advertisers create ads could be a boon for the balance sheet. Bosworth broke down what this might look like. Businesses could “ask the AI, ‘Make images for my company that work for different audiences.’ And it can save a lot of time and money.”

Metaverse plans might also include AI integration

Does this mean Zuckerberg has abandoned his grand vision for the Horizon Worlds metaverse? Don’t worry, he is definitely still trying to make the metaverse happen — now with the help of AI.

Meta is exploring ways for users to develop AI personas and, as Bosworth shared, creating 3D worlds without programming experience. “In the future, you might be able to just describe the world you want to create and have the large language model generate that world for you. And so it makes things like content creation much more accessible to more people.”

Whether that will actually get people to use the metaverse is a whole other issue. But shiny new AI advertising tools should keep Meta shareholders happy for now.