22 Years of Facebook: How It Rewrote the Rules of Tech and Business

Exactly 22 years ago, on February 4, 2004, a new chapter in internet history was written. For those who haven't seen David Fincher's cult film The Social Network, let me remind you: it all began in a small Harvard dorm room, in front of a laptop screen. Back then, the site was called "TheFacebook," and its sole purpose was to connect students. At that moment, no one – not even Mark Zuckerberg himself – could have imagined that this student pastime would, 22 years later, become a primary architect of the internet and a cornerstone of the global economy.

For us, web developers and digital marketers, this date is more than just a company anniversary. It is a great excuse to reflect on how Facebook rewrote web technology standards and created the digital infrastructure upon which millions of businesses depend today.

How the "Infinite Scroll" Was Created

In the early 2000s, the internet was like a bulletin board. You would enter a site, read the information, and leave. Facebook introduced a revolutionary concept: the News Feed.

From a technical standpoint, this was a massive challenge: how do you show billions of users individually generated, constantly updating information without reloading the page? This is exactly where the web’s transformation from static pages to living applications began. Facebook was one of the first to implement and refine asynchronous data loading (AJAX), laying the foundation for the modern internet.

Today, when you "scroll" through a social network and the content never ends, it is thanks to that technological breakthrough which connected human psychology with algorithms. Today, the algorithm decides not just what is new, but what is relevant to you at this specific second.

React.js – The Code the Modern Web Stands On

Few people know that Facebook's greatest legacy isn't its blue interface, but the code standing behind it. In 2011, when the company faced scaling issues, they created an entirely new tool: React.js.

Before this, websites were heavy and inflexible. React introduced the concept of the "Virtual DOM." Simply put: when you click "Like" on Facebook, the browser doesn't reload the entire page; it only updates that tiny button. This made websites incredibly fast.

Today, Netflix, Airbnb, and most of the world's leading platforms run on this technology, which was created by Facebook and later became Open Source. This is a prime example of how solving an internal problem can change global industry standards.

The Scale of the Digital Economy

The real power of Facebook (Meta) lies in its numbers, which often exceed the economies of entire nations. Let's look at the data that demonstrates the platform's technological and business might:
 

These numbers confirm that the site created by Zuckerberg to connect Harvard students is now a global ecosystem, upon whose smooth operation a large part of world e-commerce depends.

The Pixel: Marketing "Spy" or Genius Assistant?

Facebook radically changed the rules of doing business as well. If advertising used to mean "yelling at everyone," Facebook introduced the "Facebook Pixel" – a tiny piece of code that is now embedded in almost every online store.

This technology allows marketers to see not only who clicked on an ad, but who added an item to their cart and who purchased it. The algorithm learned to predict user behavior. As a result, businesses gained the opportunity to offer their product only to those who genuinely need it. This allowed small businesses to compete with giants, as effective advertising no longer requires million-dollar budgets.

Adaptation or Death: A Lesson for Business

Over 22 years, Facebook (now Meta) has repeatedly proven that survival is only possible through constant adaptation. When the smartphone boom began in 2012, many predicted the company's collapse because their site was designed only for computers. However, Zuckerberg took radical measures, completely shifting the strategy to a "Mobile First" principle and acquiring platforms like Instagram and WhatsApp.

Today, the company is at a crossroads again. The rebranded entity is now betting on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Virtual Reality (Metaverse). Time will tell if this bet pays off, but one thing is clear: in the tech world, standing still means falling behind.

What Does This Mean for Your Business?

Facebook's history teaches us that a successful digital product isn't just a good idea and a pretty design. It is sound architecture, correct data analysis, and functionality tailored to user behavior.

A modern website or application must be a living organism that reacts to market demands in real-time. If you need a partner to help you create a modern, fast, and business-goal-oriented web platform, let’s put our experience to work for you.

Write to us or call us at: 📞 032 2 47 07 70. We know how to turn technology into an instrument for your business growth.