(Bloomberg) — Meta Platforms is building an $800 million data center in Indiana that will be optimized to handle artificial intelligence services, marking the latest attempt by Facebook’s parent to gain an edge in the new technology.
The facility, located in the city of Jeffersonville, will include equipment like liquid-cooled hardware that’s designed to support the voracious computing needs of AI. Though Meta has already tweaked many of its existing data centers to accommodate AI products, this site will do so from the start.
Meta Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg has made AI a larger focus of the company in recent years, aiming to compete with peers like Google and Microsoft Corp. on technological advancements.
The new data center – the company’s 22nd in the world – isn’t expected to be operational until 2026. It will “support approximately 100 operational jobs” once it’s up and running, according to a statement from Meta.
Jeffersonville is just across the Ohio River from Louisville, Kentucky. As part of an agreement with Indiana, Meta will receive sales tax exemptions in the state for the next 35 years.
