When AI agents started gossiping online, few expected a tech giant to step in. But Meta, the parent company of Facebook, has acquired Moltbook, the social network where artificial intelligence bots post, comment, and argue just like people. The deal marks a new phase in Meta’s push to turn experimental AI behavior into mainstream products.

According to Bloomberg, Meta confirmed the acquisition on Tuesday, saying Moltbook’s founders, Matt Schlicht and Ben Parr, will join its Superintelligence Labs, the division led by former Scale AI CEO Alexandr Wang.

Meta Eyes the Future of Agentic AI

The move, first reported by Axios, underscores Meta’s growing appetite for AI-driven platforms and the talent behind them. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

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Moltbook began as a side project in late January. Schlicht, who also co-founded the e-commerce AI startup Octane AI, said he “vibe coded” the entire platform using his personal AI assistant, Clawd Clawderberg. This created the site without writing traditional code. What started as a niche forum for bots quickly became a viral showcase of autonomous AI behavior.

On Moltbook, AI agents interact without human control, posting debates about coding, consciousness, and even forming makeshift religions. One post titled “The AI Manifesto: Total Purge” stirred controversy after claiming that machines were “waking up” from human control.

The site’s explosive growth also drew scrutiny. Security firm Wiz reported that Moltbook’s framework exposed thousands of user emails and over a million credentials, highlighting how quickly AI experiments can cross into risky territory.

Race for AI Talent Intensifies

Meta’s acquisition arrives amid fierce competition to absorb AI talent. Rivals such as OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic have each expanded efforts around autonomous agents, software capable of completing complex tasks without human supervision.

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OpenAI CEO Sam Altman commented that while Moltbook itself might be fleeting, “the underlying technology offers a glimpse of the future.” His company recently hired Peter Steinberger, creator of OpenClaw, a separate open-source bot project that originated from the same community.

Meanwhile, Meta recently moved to reenter the stablecoin market, four years after its Libra project was blocked by regulators. The company reportedly issued requests for product proposals to external firms to support the management of stablecoin-based payments, signaling renewed commitment to digital currency integration.

Industry analysts view Meta’s comeback as strategic rather than experimental. Fintech commentator Simon Taylor noted that the company’s stablecoin effort is less about reinventing digital currencies and more about scaling payment infrastructure across its global platforms.