Meta Platforms has entered into a multi-billion dollar agreement to lease artificial intelligence chips from Google in order to accelerate the development of new AI models, according to a report by The Information, which cited a source familiar with the negotiations.
The reported multi-year deal highlights the intensifying race among major technology companies to secure advanced AI chips and expand their artificial intelligence infrastructure. Firms across the sector are investing heavily in hardware to meet surging demand for AI applications and large language models.
Both Meta and Google declined to comment on the report when contacted by Reuters.
The development follows another major announcement earlier this week, when Advanced Micro Devices revealed plans to sell up to $60 billion worth of AI chips to Meta. The Facebook parent company also recently finalized an agreement with Nvidia to purchase both its current and next-generation AI processors, underscoring Meta’s aggressive push to strengthen its AI capabilities.
In December, Reuters reported that Google was working to position its Tensor Processing Units (TPUs) as a competitive alternative to Nvidia’s dominant graphics processing units (GPUs). TPU sales have increasingly become a key driver of growth within Google Cloud, as the company aims to demonstrate to investors that its artificial intelligence investments are delivering measurable returns.
According to Thursday’s report, Meta is also in discussions with Google about directly purchasing TPUs for its data centers as early as next year. However, the current status of those negotiations remains unclear.
The report further stated that Google has signed an agreement with a large, unnamed investment firm to establish a joint venture that would lease TPUs to additional customers, expanding the availability of its AI hardware beyond internal use.
