How Tech Giants Are Spreading the Risk of the AI Buildout

Meta, Google and their rivals are balancing speed with risk-taking in the AI race.

Art by Clark Miller.

Joint ventures. Backstop agreements. Syndicated debt offerings. The richest tech companies and their bankers are developing increasingly complicated financial strategies to meet the soaring demands of funding artificial intelligence.

The goal for companies like Google and Meta Platforms is to stay ahead in the AI race while offloading some of the costs and risks of the buildout. Meta is raising $29 billion for a joint venture to build a data center in Louisiana called Hyperion. Meta sees the deal as an important template because it limits the company’s debt levels, said people familiar with Meta’s strategy.