Meta is about to find out whether people will actually pay for an AI agent. Internal documents seen by The Information indicate the company will launch Hatch — a consumer version of its OpenClaw agent — within weeks, with a new model called Watermelon following in October.
The pricing is where things get interesting. Meta is reportedly weighing a tiered structure that tops out at $199.99 per month. That’s a bold ask for a company whose entire ecosystem runs on free services. Hatch is designed to reach into DoorDash, Etsy, Reddit, Yelp, and Outlook, and comes with a customizable dashboard featuring tools like a fitness tracker and trip planner. It’s a productivity play dressed up as a lifestyle assistant.
Watermelon’s positioning remains murky. The documents don’t clarify whether it will fold into Meta’s Muse model family or ship as a standalone release. Given how aggressively Meta has been consolidating its AI efforts under fewer brand names, a standalone model would be a notable departure — but the company clearly wants flexibility as it figures out what resonates.
The bigger picture here is WhatsApp. Meta is reportedly building a platform that lets users plug additional AI agents directly into the messaging app. With over two billion users, WhatsApp is Meta’s most under-monetized asset. Folding an agent marketplace into it could be the distribution play that makes a $200 subscription feel less absurd. Whether consumers agree is the open question — and October’s Watermelon release may be the first real test of whether Meta can sell AI the way it sells ads.
