April 21 - Meta Platforms confirmed it has broken ground on a new data center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, a development the company values at more than $1 billion. The project is intended to bolster Meta's computing capacity as the company expands infrastructure to support its growing investments in artificial intelligence.
Meta said the Tulsa facility will be located in the Fair Oaks Innovation Park and will span more than 2 million square feet. The company noted the build will generate a substantial wave of construction employment, with more than 1,000 construction jobs expected at peak activity, and roughly 100 permanent operational roles once the site is completed.
This will mark Meta's first data center in Oklahoma and its 28th facility in the United States, and 32nd worldwide. Fortis Construction has been named the general contractor overseeing the build.
In outlining local support arrangements, Meta said it will cover the full cost of water and wastewater services required to operate the site. Governor Kevin Stitt was quoted by the company stating that Oklahoma produces more energy than it consumes, a condition he said provides reliable and affordable power that supports growth by companies such as Meta.
The announcement situates Meta within a competitive environment in which major technology firms are rapidly expanding large-scale data center footprints to secure computing resources for AI projects. The company faces pushback from environmental and consumer organizations that have raised concerns about the energy intensity of that expansion.
Separately, the company has workforce adjustments underway. Reuters reported last week that Meta intends to execute an initial round of planned layoffs on May 20, with additional reductions expected later in the year. The firm’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, is directing substantial capital toward AI initiatives, including investments described as being in the hundreds of billions of dollars to reshape the company around the technology.
Note: The facts in this report are drawn from Meta’s announcement and contemporaneous reporting of the company's planned workforce changes and investment focus.