NEW YORK, January 27, 2026, 10:22 (EST)
- Meta to pay Corning up to $6 billion over several years for fiber-optic cables for AI data centers
- Corning to expand North Carolina production; Meta becomes anchor buyer at Hickory site
- Corning shares jump in U.S. morning trade; both companies report results Wednesday
Meta Platforms has agreed to pay Corning up to $6 billion over the next several years for fiber-optic cables and related connectivity products for its AI data centers, the companies said on Tuesday. CNBC reported the payments run through 2030. (Reuters)
The deal underlines how the AI buildout is shifting from software talk to hard parts — cable, switches, power and floor space. Fiber-optic cables, which carry data as light, are a key way to move information fast inside sprawling data centers.
It also reads like a supply-chain play. Meta is trying to lock in capacity in the United States as tech firms lean into domestic sourcing and manufacturing, a theme that has sharpened under President Donald Trump’s administration.
Corning plans to expand its manufacturing footprint in North Carolina, including at its optical cable facility in Hickory where Meta will be the “anchor customer” — the big buyer that helps justify more capacity. Corning CEO Wendell P. Weeks said the partnership would help it “develop, innovate, and manufacture the critical technologies” behind next-generation data centers, adding that “we’re strengthening domestic supply chains” as the company targets a 15% to 20% lift in employment in the state. (Corning)
Meta framed the pact as part of its push to build more AI infrastructure at home. Joel Kaplan, Meta’s chief global affairs officer, said building advanced data centers “requires world-class partners and American manufacturing,” calling Corning’s products “high-performance fiber optic cables” needed for its AI systems. Meta said 26 of its data centers are under construction or operating in the United States, and that U.S. projects have supported about 30,000 skilled trade jobs during construction and 5,000 operational jobs. (Meta)
Corning shares were up about 13% in U.S. morning trading, while Meta shares were down roughly 0.8%.
Corning’s optical connectivity gear has become a bottleneck product for big data centers, which need to shuffle data across ever-larger clusters of computers. The company’s rising demand from customers including Meta, Microsoft and Alphabet’s Google helped drive a more than 84% surge in Corning shares in 2025.
Meta has been spending aggressively on data center infrastructure as it races to roll out competitive AI products. The company has also said it plans about $600 billion of spending on U.S. tech infrastructure and jobs over the next three years, and recently announced a “Meta Compute” initiative to oversee its global data center fleet and supplier ties.
But the agreement is “up to” $6 billion, and the final bill depends on how quickly Meta builds and equips new sites. Any slowdown in AI infrastructure spending, or snags in factory expansions and supply chains — including tariff and trade risks that manufacturers often flag — could leave the deal smaller than the headline number.
Both Meta and Corning are due to report quarterly results on Wednesday. Investors will be watching capital spending plans at Meta and order trends at Corning to see how long this data-center demand holds.
