Meta looks to raise $25B in bond sale to fund AI spending as capex surges to $145B

Meta is heading back to the bond market—and this time the numbers are hard to ignore. The company is preparing to raise up to $25 billion in investment-grade debt, according to a Bloomberg report. The move comes as Meta Platforms pours unprecedented capital into artificial intelligence infrastructure, a shift that is starting to reshape how Big Tech finances its ambitions.

“Meta Platforms Inc. is looking to sell between $20 billion and $25 billion of investment-grade bonds, according to people with knowledge of the transaction, as the Facebook parent boosts spending on infrastructure for the artificial intelligence boom,” Bloomberg reported.

This isn’t unfamiliar territory. Last year, Meta completed a $30 billion bond sale, its largest ever, signaling a break from its long-standing reliance on internal cash flow. That shift is becoming more pronounced. A day before news of the latest deal surfaced, Meta raised its 2026 capital expenditure forecast by another $10 billion, bringing the total expected spend to between $125 billion and $145 billion. Across the industry, total AI infrastructure investment is on track to exceed $700 billion this year.

The cost of AI is pushing Big Tech deeper into debt markets

That surge in spending is forcing even the most cash-rich tech companies to rethink how they fund growth. For years, Meta generated enough cash from its core advertising business to bankroll new bets. Now, the scale of AI investment—data centers, chips, and energy—has pushed those limits, nudging the company deeper into debt markets.

Details of the offering are still taking shape. Earlier Thursday, Meta filed for a multi-part bond sale spanning six tranches, though it did not disclose the total size. Initial pricing discussions suggest that the longest-dated notes, maturing in 2066, could carry yields up to 1.8 percentage points above U.S. Treasuries, according to Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter.

“The company is selling the debt in as many as six parts, said one of the people, asking not to be identified because they aren’t authorized to speak on the matter. Initial price discussions for the longest portion of the deal — a note maturing in 2066 — are for a yield of as much as 1.8 percentage point more than Treasuries,” Bloomberg added, citing one of the people who asked not to be identified.

Credit agencies are watching closely. S&P Global assigned the new debt an investment-grade rating and maintained a stable outlook. Analysts expect Meta’s leverage to remain “well below” downgrade thresholds over the next two years, though they acknowledged that the scale of AI spending is “starting to affect credit metrics.”

The bigger concern sits beyond Meta alone. Analysts have flagged what they describe as circular capital flows across the AI ecosystem, where companies fund each other’s infrastructure in ways that could amplify risk if conditions tighten. With hundreds of billions now tied up in AI buildouts, the margin for error is narrowing.

Inside Meta, the spending shift is already reshaping priorities. The company has pulled back from its metaverse efforts, a segment that had burned through billions with limited payoff. At the same time, cost cuts are coming into focus. Reuters reported that Meta is preparing to lay off 20% or more of its workforce, with an initial round affecting roughly half that number expected on May 20.

Taken together, the moves paint a clear picture. Meta is going all in on AI—and it’s willing to lean on debt, cut costs elsewhere, and reset its long-term strategy to get there.