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Wall Street Banks Plan to Sell Billions in Stock for AI Projects

Updated 5:04 AM ET · 8:35 AM ETConfirmed

Business Desk

In Short: Meta plans to sell $95 billion in stock to fund AI projects, despite a spokesperson calling reports speculative.

Meta is planning a massive stock sale to fund its ambitious artificial intelligence (AI) projects, according to recent reports. The company intends to raise $35 billion through public offerings and another $60 billion through additional share sales.

According to Dealroom, Meta's third-quarter revenue increased by 26% to $64.6 billion, surpassing Wall Street's expectations. However, the news of the potential stock offering caused Meta's shares to drop more than 5%.

The company's AI agent, Muse, has seen rapid adoption, gaining over 10 million users in the U.S. And Canada within six weeks. Meta projects up to $145 billion in capital spending this year to expand its AI infrastructure.

In response to the reports, a Meta spokesperson described them as 'pure speculation,' emphasizing the company's focus on raising capital flexibly to support AI opportunities. The spokesperson also noted that the new class of nonvoting Class C stock will help fund infrastructure, acquisitions, and employee compensation without diluting CEO Mark Zuckerberg's control.

Meanwhile, Oracle is also cutting costs in parts of its business while committing tens of billions of dollars to expand its AI and cloud operations. The company has been laying off employees as part of a broader organizational change, though the exact number of workers affected has not been disclosed.

In Gaza, the US-controlled Board of Peace unveiled a six-month plan for reconstruction, with a need for $2.45 billion to implement 66 projects. The board emphasized the urgency of the reconstruction efforts, noting that full reconstruction from the physical damage across Gaza will cost roughly $35.2 billion over the medium term and another $71.4 billion in the next 10 years.

The reconstruction plan includes ambitious infrastructure, education, and health initiatives designed to support Trump's 20-point plan to end the Israel-Hamas war. Additionally, there are projects aimed at disarming Hamas, such as the clearance of tunnels and a weapons buy-back program.

In the UK, significant investment will be required to expand the electricity grid to meet rising power demand and ensure that new renewable energy projects can connect to it. Gareth Davies, head of the U.K. Watchdog the National Audit Office (NAO), said the planned upgrades would 'test systems not designed for activity at this pace or scale.'

French debt is projected to rise to nearly 122% of the country’s gross domestic product next year, despite billions of euros in planned spending cuts.

In Howell Township, a developer is proposing a $1-billion data center, and the township is considering a six-month moratorium on such projects. Discussions seemed to fizzle in June and July, with developers 'ghosting' officials before returning in August to try to advance the project.

Background

What's confirmed

• Meta is planning a massive stock sale to fund its ambitious artificial intelligence (AI) projects, according to recent reports. The company intends to raise $35 billion through public offerings and another $60 billion through additional share sales.
• According to Dealroom, Meta's third-quarter revenue increased by 26% to $64.6 billion, surpassing Wall Street's expectations. However, the news of the potential stock offering caused Meta's shares to drop more than 5%.
• The company's AI agent, Muse, has seen rapid adoption, gaining over 10 million users in the U.S. And Canada within six weeks. Meta projects up to $145 billion in capital spending this year to expand its AI infrastructure.
• In response to the reports, a Meta spokesperson described them as 'pure speculation,' emphasizing the company's focus on raising capital flexibly to support AI opportunities. The spokesperson also noted that the new class of nonvoting Class C stock will help fund infrastructure, acquisitions, and employee compensation without diluting CEO Mark Zuckerberg's control.
• Meanwhile, Oracle is also cutting costs in parts of its business while committing tens of billions of dollars to expand its AI and cloud operations. The company has been laying off employees as part of a broader organizational change, though the exact number of workers affected has not been disclosed.
• In Gaza, the US-controlled Board of Peace unveiled a six-month plan for reconstruction, with a need for $2.45 billion to implement 66 projects. The board emphasized the urgency of the reconstruction efforts, noting that full reconstruction from the physical damage across Gaza will cost roughly $35.2 billion over the medium term and another $71.4 billion in the next 10 years.
• The reconstruction plan includes ambitious infrastructure, education, and health initiatives designed to support Trump's 20-point plan to end the Israel-Hamas war. Additionally, there are projects aimed at disarming Hamas, such as the clearance of tunnels and a weapons buy-back program.
• French debt is projected to rise to nearly 122% of the country’s gross domestic product next year, despite billions of euros in planned spending cuts.
• In Howell Township, a developer is proposing a $1-billion data center, and the township is considering a six-month moratorium on such projects. Discussions seemed to fizzle in June and July, with developers 'ghosting' officials before returning in August to try to advance the project.

What's still developing

• Now every attacker has one Recommended videos "If you're building a frontier technology, then you don't have growth" Kape Technologies CEO: “People are now much more aware that they need to be better protected” Photo: Shutterstock Oracle begins another round of layoffs as $2.8 billion restructuring plan expands Employees were told their positions were being eliminated as part of a “broader organizational change” and that their last working day was immediately, but Oracle has not disclosed how many workers are affected.
• Click here to see Canada's most comprehensive listing of projects in conceptual and planning stages Click here to see Canada's most comprehensive listing of projects in conceptual and planning stages OTTAWA – Ottawa’s retaliatory tariffs on American goods took effect just after midnight EDT on Tuesday, responding to the 50 per cent tariffs Washington hit Canada with last month.
• Last week, The Times of Israel first revealed the projects as well as the plan for Wednesday’s briefing.
• Jacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief NEW YORK — The US-controlled Board of Peace on Wednesday unveiled its six-month plan for the commencement of reconstruction in the war-decimated Gaza Strip, with its envoys telling representatives from dozens of countries present that they will need $2.45 billion to implement their first 66 projects.
• NCAG chief commissioner Ali Shaath said the top priority would be projects to prepare Gaza for the winter as Board of Peace officials received warnings from Israeli meteorological experts who forecast an earlier winter this year, with more extreme conditions than normal, two sources familiar with the matter said.
• Investment will contribute to new pylons, subsea cables, and converter stations to connect the country’s impressive pipeline of wind and solar energy projects.
• Uplift and empower the community. - Howell Township, where a developer is proposing a $1-billion data center, considers a six-month moratorium on such projects. - While on a bus trip to see data centers that was organized by DTE Energy, a township property owner writes that he spoke with the utility's "head cheese" about the timing of the approval process. - Learn how you can weigh in on the Howell Township data center proposal with Planet Detroit's tips for civic action.
• President Lee Jae-myung immediately pushed back on X, formerly Twitter, writing that "among the investment projects announced by the U.S., the Alaska LNG project will proceed only on the premise that its commercial viability is confirmed and that it complies with the Republic of Korea's legal procedures."
• "Today's announcement is not the end but rather a new beginning."
• Chrome and its open-source project, Chromium, are, by scale, among the most complex open-source projects on the planet.

Sources

• Theconversationlink
• Dailysabahlink
• Calcalistechlink
• Wvoclink
• Canadalink
• Lbpostlink
• Timesofisraellink
• Oilpricelink
• Planetdetroitlink
• Courthousenewslink
• Enlink
• Zdnetlink
• WarpBeat — background on Wall Street Banks to Sell Billions in Stock to Fund AI link
• WarpBeat — background on Musk and Anthropic Pledge Billions in Stock Giveaways link
• PULSE & PRICE — video link