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Meta slashed its federal tax bill nearly 71% by labeling AI data centers experimental

The company's research tax credits trimmed $3.9 billion from its 2025 tax bill, up from $700 million in 2023

Photo by Laurent Hou/Hans Lucas /AFP via Getty Images

Meta $META has classified its AI data centers as experimental facilities to claim billions of dollars in federal research tax credits, a strategy the company's own accountants have flagged as legally risky, according to The New York Times.

Starting in late 2024, the company drew a tax distinction between chips destined for AI data centers and those going to ordinary data centers, the Times reported, citing people familiar with Meta's operations. By treating the facilities as "pilot models" under a tax credit created in the 1980s, Meta has been claiming that expensive Nvidia $NVDA chips qualify for a research and experimentation tax break intended to spur innovation — not standard........

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