In the race to release AI models and ways for developers to use them, Meta appears to be lagging behind.

The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that, according to those familiar with Meta's plans, there's no firm release date for an API, or application programming interface, for Muse Spark, an advanced AI large-language model the company released in April. At the time, the company said a release of the API, which allows developers to use the closed-source, proprietary model, was coming soon. That still hasn't happened two months later. 

A Meta spokesperson said in an email to CNET that the API should be available in June. 

"We know people want the API, and we're excited to get it into their hands," the representative said in the email. "We're already testing with some early partners and look forward to releasing it this month."   

The spokesperson also pointed to an April 10 X post where Meta's chief AI officer, Alexandr Wang, said, "the muse spark API will be coming soon!" 

Like other major tech companies that have shifted their attention to AI, including Microsoft, Google and Apple, Meta is under intense pressure to profit from the enormous investment it's made in AI as soon as possible.

Over the last year, Meta has cut jobs as it has increased AI spending. It focused on introducing AI features across its products, such as Instagram, WhatsApp and Facebook, and on launching AI-powered hardware like its Meta Glasses. 

Muse Spark is the first Meta AI model that isn't open source. It cannot be freely built upon or used as previous models were. It's unclear whether that change is contributing to delays.

As the WSJ story points out, delays in AI technology releases can be attributed to many factors, but pushing back the timeline can create the perception that the company is struggling to make good on its AI plans.