Meta has released Forum, a standalone iOS app that repackages Facebook Groups into a dedicated discussion feed, mounting its most direct challenge yet to Reddit's grip on online communities. The app lets users post under pseudonymous nicknames while admins see real identities, and adds an AI-powered "Ask" tab that pulls answers from discussions across all groups. Meta says it is built for "deeper discussions" and "real answers," prioritizing topic-based communities over entertainment-driven feeds.
Reddit shares fell as much as 6% in a single session on the news, deepening a slide that has left the stock down nearly 40% in 2026. The drop reflects investor fears that Meta is targeting one of the internet's last durable, community-driven businesses.
The pressure comes despite strong fundamentals at Reddit, where first-quarter revenue jumped 69% year-over-year and daily active unique visitors rose 17% to 126.8 million. Analysts warn the bigger long-term threat is AI search from Google, OpenAI and Meta, which could reduce the need to visit discussion forums directly.