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Meta to double AI spending, despite industry bubble concerns
29 Jan 2026

Meta, the parent company of Facebook, has announced its plan to significantly increase its spending on artificial intelligence (AI) projects this year.

The tech giant expects to invest between $115 billion and $135 billion in capital expenditure for 2026.

This is nearly double the $72 billion spent last year and a massive jump from the $39 billion investment made in 2024.

AI spending surge fueled by new initiatives
Strategic expansion

The massive increase in spending is largely driven by the company's new initiatives, including the Meta Superintelligence Labs and Meta Compute.

"We are seeing a major AI acceleration. I expect 2026 to be a year where this wave accelerates even further on several fronts," said Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg during an earnings call.

He also announced plans for building tens of gigawatts this decade through the new initiative, which would require long-term investments in silicon and energy.

Meta's projected expenses for 2026 and workforce impact
Financial forecast

Meta expects its total expenses to be between $162 billion and $169 billion in 2026, a huge increase from the $118 billion spent in 2025.

The company has also seen a spike in employee compensation due to an aggressive AI hiring spree.

Despite these changes, Meta cut 10% of its Reality Labs division employees and laid off around 600 people from its AI division last October.

AI strategy and future expectations
Strategic shift

Zuckerberg said that in 2025, the company rebuilt its AI program's foundations.

"Over the coming months, we're going to start shipping our new models and products," he added.

Despite the increased infrastructure investment, Meta expects to deliver operating income in 2026 that is above its 2025 operating income.

The company's total revenue for Q4 2025 was $59.89 billion, a 24% increase from last year.