Meta discloses $825B in future AI spending commitments as free cash flow turns negative; shares slide 6%
What happened
Meta disclosed in a regulatory filing Thursday that it has signed on to roughly $825 billion in future leases and noncancelable contracts to support its AI buildout, up from nearly $700 billion disclosed in July. The total comprises $355.7 billion in uncommenced operating and finance leases (data centers, energy infrastructure through 2036) and $454.5 billion in noncancelable contracts, with $121.4 billion due in 2027 alone. Q3 capex hit $34.9 billion, and free cash flow came in at negative $2.1 billion — the first negative quarter since Meta went public, versus +$10.6 billion a year earlier. Shares fell more than 6% Thursday morning, and Meta's credit default swaps hit a record high as bondholders repriced the balance-sheet risk. CFO Susan Li lifted the bottom of the 2026 capex guide to $135-145 billion and signaled aggressive AI investment continues into 2027, though no 2027 capex figure was given.
Why it matters & what’s next are part of Pro, along with the audio summary.
Start your free 14-day trialWho’s affected
- META — the committing company; bondholders/equity diluted by spending overhang
- AI infrastructure and energy names (NVDA, CoreWeave, data-center and power suppliers) — beneficiaries of Meta's locked-in demand
- Growth/mega-cap ETFs — Meta is a large S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 weight