Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has assigned a team to develop Arena, a standalone prediction market app that will allow users to forecast outcomes in politics, sports, and world events using a points system instead of real money. The project is described as experimental but is a top priority for Meta, which aims to leverage its 3.56 billion daily users for adoption.
Arena will operate independently from Meta’s existing platforms, according to employees familiar with the project who spoke to The New York Times. Users will earn and spend points in a system resembling video game rewards. However, Meta has left open the possibility of introducing cash-based betting in the future.
The development positions Meta in direct competition with existing platforms like Polymarket and Kalshi, which have seen increased activity in event contracts since 2024. Polymarket gained significant attention during the 2024 U.S. presidential election, facilitating billions in trades on electoral outcomes.
Other firms, including Coinbase, Kraken, and Robinhood, have also launched or explored prediction market products of their own in recent years. Meta previously launched a product called Forecast in 2020 that invited users to make predictions on current events, but it was closed in 2022.
Arena is part of Zuckerberg’s broader strategy to develop new standalone apps reflecting emerging online social behaviors. The company is also testing a separate app named Meta Photos that employs artificial intelligence to create new types of media.
