Meta last disclosed Instagram’s user figures in 2022 when Zuckerberg said the app had hit more than 2 billion monthly active users.

Meta, previously known as Facebook, bought Instagram for $1 billion in 2012, a move that had raised questions about the company’s strategy as the social media app had begun with just photo-sharing without significant revenue.

Since then, the app has grown astronomically, and some firms have estimated it will make up more than half of Meta’s US ad revenue this year.

A major factor contributing to Instagram’s success is the Reels feature, which launched in 2020 and allows users to create short-form content - a market that faces fierce competition from rivals such as TikTok and Google-owned YouTube Shorts.

TikTok, owned by Chinese technology behemoth ByteDance, has more than 1 billion users globally who visit monthly, a company spokesperson said earlier this month.