Meta’s Backstop Is Linchpin for $26 Billion AI Data-Center Deal

When Meta Platforms Inc. turned to lenders to secure $26 billion in debt funding for construction of a sprawling new data center, one key detail made all the difference in fueling a heated bidding war for the deal: the technology giant agreed to a special guarantee on the Louisiana complex.

The financing is being run through a complex arrangement that keeps the debt off of Meta’s books and frees up its balance sheet as it pursues an aggressive push into artificial intelligence. A joint venture will actually build and own the 4-million-square-foot Hyperion facility, while Meta will occupy and use ...