Meta Makes Small Business a Company-Wide Priority
Mark Zuckerberg didn't bury the lede. In an internal post shared with employees, he wrote plainly: "In the AI era, it should be easier than ever for people to build new businesses. We want to build the services that enable this." That's the heartbeat of Meta Small Business — a company-wide initiative designed to support entrepreneurship and speed up AI adoption across Meta's platforms.
The initiative was first reported by Axios and signals a meaningful shift in how Meta is organizing itself internally. Leading the charge are Dina Powell McCormick, Meta's president and vice chairman, and Naomi Gleit, who heads product development. Together, they're steering the effort across Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp — three platforms with a combined reach that few companies on earth can match.
The timing is deliberate. Meta has been stepping back from its metaverse ambitions — most recently retiring Horizon Worlds on Quest VR headsets — and pivoting hard toward artificial intelligence. Meta Small Business is, in many ways, the clearest expression yet of where the company is placing its bets.
New Commerce Tools Unveiled at Shoptalk Las Vegas
Affiliate Partnerships Expanding Across Platforms and Regions
Alongside the initiative announcement, Meta rolled out a significant wave of commerce features at the Shoptalk conference in Las Vegas. The most immediate expansion involves affiliate partnerships on Facebook, which are now opening up to include Amazon and eBay in the United States, Mercado Libre across Latin America, and Shopee in Asia. Temu and eBay are also joining as additional Facebook affiliate partners in the U.S.
Instagram isn't far behind. The platform will begin testing similar affiliate experiences this spring, starting with Amazon in the U.S. and Shopee in Asia. The move mirrors the kind of native shopping integration that has made TikTok Shop a formidable competitor — and it's clear Meta is watching that playbook closely.
Creators Get More Product Linking Power in Reels
Creators on Instagram are getting a meaningful upgrade too. They'll soon be able to link up to 30 products directly within Instagram Reels, and that feature is rolling out across 22 countries. Here's the part that'll get creators' attention: Meta says it won't take a cut of sales through these links — at least for now. The data generated from those transactions, though, will almost certainly feed back into Meta's advertising strategies. That's the quiet trade-off underneath a generous-sounding offer.
In-App Checkout, AI Recommendations, and the Buy Now Button
A Streamlined Purchase Path Powered by PayPal and Stripe
Meta introduced a "buy now" button that lets users complete purchases directly within Facebook and Instagram after clicking on an ad. No redirects, no friction, no leaving the app. Checkout is powered through partnerships with PayPal and Stripe, which gives the experience a layer of payment credibility that matters to both merchants and shoppers.
Melanie Babcock, CMO of 1-800-Flowers.com, put it well: "This new checkout experience is an opportunity for us to be more present in the moments that matter most." That's the commercial logic in plain English — catch the customer at peak intent, before they bounce.
AI-Powered Product Discovery for Undecided Shoppers
Not every user who sees an ad is ready to buy. Meta has thought about that too. For users who aren't at the purchase stage yet, the platform will surface AI-generated product recommendations, reviews, and brand details — essentially a personalized discovery layer built into the browsing experience.
This builds on Meta's recent testing of an AI shopping research tool inside its chatbot, which already offers personalized product suggestions to select users in the United States. The direction is clear: Meta wants AI to guide shoppers from curiosity to checkout, all without them ever leaving the app.
Meta's Retail Media Ambitions Come Into Focus
What's happening here isn't just a product update — it's a strategic repositioning. Meta is making a direct play for a larger share of the retail media market, and the tools announced at Shoptalk are the infrastructure for that push. Affiliate partnerships with major global platforms, in-app checkout, AI-driven recommendations, and a company-wide small business initiative all point in the same direction.
The company reported paying $3 billion to creators in 2025, a 35 percent increase from the year before, with roughly 60 percent of that tied to commerce activity. That's not charity — it's an investment in keeping creators on-platform and driving transactions that Meta can learn from and monetize.
The integration of native shopping links across Reels and Facebook posts mirrors TikTok Shop's model, but Meta's advantage is scale and advertiser relationships built over two decades. Whether that's enough to dominate retail media is still an open question — but the infrastructure being laid right now suggests Meta is playing a long game.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is Meta Small Business and who is leading it?
Meta Small Business is a company-wide initiative announced by Mark Zuckerberg to support entrepreneurship and accelerate AI adoption across Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. It is led by Dina Powell McCormick, Meta's president and vice chairman, and Naomi Gleit, who heads product development.
Q: Which platforms and partners are included in Meta's new affiliate shopping expansion?
Facebook's affiliate partnerships are expanding to include Amazon and eBay in the U.S., Mercado Libre in Latin America, and Shopee in Asia, with Temu and eBay also joining as additional U.S. partners. Instagram will begin testing affiliate experiences this spring, starting with Amazon in the U.S. and Shopee in Asia.
Q: How does Meta's new in-app checkout work, and what role does AI play in the shopping experience?
The new "buy now" button allows users to complete purchases directly within Facebook and Instagram after clicking an ad, with checkout handled through PayPal and Stripe. For users not ready to buy, Meta serves AI-generated product recommendations, reviews, and brand details — building on an AI shopping research tool already being tested inside its chatbot with select U.S. users.