Infrastructure Outsourcing: Meta and BlackRock Build 1 GW AI Campus in El Paso for $14B

The financial model of the AI industry is undergoing structural changes. On July 28, 2026, Meta and the world’s largest investment fund, BlackRock, announced the creation of a joint venture to build a mega data center in El Paso. The $14 billion project will provide approximately 1 gigawatt (1 GW) of compute capacity.

This move proves that even hyperscalers on Meta’s level can no longer single-handedly bear the astronomical CAPEX for AI infrastructure development. The involvement of BlackRock means that data centers for frontier models have definitively transitioned into the class of institutional investment assets (on par with power plants or pipelines). Wall Street is directly financing the hardware for AGI, receiving in return guaranteed long-term yields from compute capacity leasing. The era of IT giants building data centers exclusively with their own free cash is officially over.

Source: Meta / BlackRock / Reuters