I don't get why so many still believe the US is capitalist or that the word is even a useful abstraction.

Zuckerberg controls the allocation of resources that he does because created an advertising and surveillance apparatus useful to the ruling class.

The reason he allocates huge resources on huge gambles is because he's paid to gamble on trying to create the next huge advertising and surveillance platform.

Within his viewpoint of the world, this is the best allocation of resources. From the standpoint of just a regular person, it's obvious that this is wasteful compared to a hypothetical scenario where you invest those billions into proven projects like housing, infra, and energy.

But the ruling class will not allow this. If Zuckerberg announced tomorrow that Meta would start trying to build high-speed rail, the stock would tank, even though it is a successful business model. The US is a playground for the wealthy to gamble on finding the next tools of world-domination. The "Capitalism" window dressing exists as a facade to give a justification as to why Zuckerberg deserves his houses while nurses sleep in studios.