Sou Hu Cai Jing·2026-01-28 11:22Core Viewpoint - Meta is accelerating its investment in large-scale data centers by partnering with Corning, a 175-year-old glass manufacturer, to secure fiber optic cable supplies for its artificial intelligence initiatives [1][3] Group 1: Investment and Financial Commitment - Meta has committed to paying up to $6 billion (approximately 41.79 billion RMB) to Corning for fiber optic cable procurement by 2030 [3] - Corning is expanding its factory in Hickory, North Carolina, to meet the increasing demand from major tech companies including Meta, Nvidia, OpenAI, Google, Amazon, and Microsoft [3] Group 2: Industry Trends and Technological Shifts - The factory expansion will make it the largest fiber optic cable production facility globally, indicating a significant shift in the industry towards fiber optics [3] - Fiber optics are expected to replace copper cables in server racks as the number of GPUs per rack increases, making the transition "inevitable" according to Corning's CEO [3] Group 3: Company Performance and Market Position - Corning's stock price has surged over 75% in the past year, with its optical communications segment becoming the largest and fastest-growing part of the company [3] - Corning is positioned at the forefront of a new wave of data center construction, responding to historic demand alongside various suppliers [3]