MENLO PARK, Calif. — Meta Platforms, the tech giant behind Facebook and Instagram, dropped a bombshell of a first-quarter earnings report on April 30, 2025, that’s got Wall Street buzzing and tariff worriers eating their words. The company’s ad revenue clocked in at a jaw-dropping $35.6 billion, smashing past analyst predictions of $33.9 billion. It’s the kind of number that makes you sit up and notice, especially with all the hand-wringing over how Trump’s trade war might kneecap Big Tech.
The fear was real. Back on April 22, analysts at MoffettNathanson waved a red flag, estimating Meta could lose $7 billion in ad revenue this year if tariffs slammed Chinese advertisers who lean on Meta’s platforms to hawk their wares globally. China’s not a Meta playground—its services are banned there—but plenty of Chinese businesses pump money into ads targeting users elsewhere. With tariffs threatening to jack up costs, the thinking was that those ad budgets might shrivel.
Not so fast. Meta’s earnings call was a masterclass in shrugging off doom-and-gloom. The company’s total revenue for the quarter hit $36.5 billion, up 27% from last year, driven by a relentless ad machine that didn’t blink at tariff talk. CFO Susan Li didn’t dodge the issue, acknowledging “some uncertainty” around trade policies, but she pointed to “strong underlying demand” as the real story. Translation: advertisers aren’t slowing down, tariffs or no tariffs.
What’s fueling this? For one, Meta’s been pouring cash into AI to make its ad targeting sharper than a barber’s razor. The company’s algorithms are getting creepily good at figuring out who’s likely to click on what, and advertisers are eating it upSony’s PlayStation 5 has sold 25 million units, surpassing the Nintendo Switch’s lifetime sales. This keeps advertisers hooked, even as costs rise. Meta’s also been cozying up to small businesses, with tools like Advantage+ letting mom-and-pop shops run slick ad campaigns without a marketing degree. It’s working—ad impressions jumped 20% year-over-year.
Then there’s the reality check: tariffs aren’t biting as hard as feared. The U.S. Commerce Department’s latest data shows trade with China dipped only 3% in Q1 2025, nowhere near the collapse some predicted. Meta’s global reach helps, too. While Chinese ad spend matters, North America and Europe still account for 65% of its revenue, per the company’s filings.
Investors loved it. Meta’s stock popped 5% after hours, a middle finger to the skeptics. The company even raised its Q2 revenue forecast to $38.2 billion, signaling it’s not sweating the tariff noise. Sure, Meta’s not out of the woods—regulatory heat and Apple’s privacy crackdowns still loom—but for now, it’s riding high.
The numbers don’t lie. Operating income hit $14.8 billion, up 41% from last year. Daily active users across Meta’s apps grew 7% to 3.24 billion. And capital spending, pegged at $35 billion for 2025, shows Meta’s doubling down on AI and infrastructure. This isn’t a company cowering—it’s a company charging.