Earlier quoted context omitted.
If they accomplish AGI first, they will be the world’s most valuable company, by far. If they fall short of AGI there are still many ways a more limited but still quite useful AI might make them worth far more than Meta. I don’t know how to handicap the odds of them doing either of these at all, but they would seem to have the best chance at it of anyone right now.
Aren't they proving the opposite of your proposed alternative already? A limited AI is not making them money and since every new model becomes obsolete within a year, they can't just stop and enjoy the benefits of the current model.
The fact that it isn’t making money now isn’t indicative it never will. I can think of a lot of very large tech companies who people once said the same about.