Meta Figured Out How to Build a Mac App ⇥ 9to5mac.com

Zac Hall, 9to5Mac:

The new Meta AI desktop app is version 1.0 beta at launch and weighs just 16MB once installed.

Based on initial inspection, it runs natively on Apple silicon Macs with macOS 15 or later, using an AppKit and SwiftUI shell with WebKit for richer chat content. In other words, this is not an Electron app or a repackaged iPad release.

Meta’s other major Mac app is WhatsApp, and it comes in at over 650 MB (and over a gigabyte on Windows). Its iOS apps are no better: Instagram is 605 MB, Facebook is 491 MB, and even Threads is over 200 MB. I do not understand why since virtually everything displayed in these apps is served remotely.