Corning and Meta Platforms kicked off construction on an expansion of Corning’s optical cable manufacturing capacity in Hickory, North Carolina, reinforcing their collaboration to support the buildout of advanced AI data centers using technology that originated in the United States.
The announcement of this groundbreaking is a key development in the multiyear, up to $6 billion agreement between Corning and Meta to accelerate the deployment of the most advanced data centers in the U.S. and to support Meta’s apps, technologies, and AI objectives.
This agreement, announced in January of this year, calls for Corning to supply Meta with new optical fiber, cable, and connectivity solutions. Meta will serve as the anchor customer for the Hickory expansion, which will produce optical cable critical to AI infrastructure.
Corning runs two of the world’s largest cable and optical fiber factories in North Carolina.
“North Carolina has been central to Corning’s optical manufacturing leadership for decades, supported by a highly skilled workforce and the strong, long‑standing backing of state and local leaders," said Mike O’Day, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Corning Optical Communications.
Enhancing employment opportunities
Corning’s new facility could be a welcome presence, particularly as the U.S. job market has seen struggles in recent months.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. economy lost jobs in February, a month marred by severe winter weather.
The company’s expansion of its NC plant is significant not only because Meta is a key customer, but also because it will create new job opportunities in North Carolina.
Corning, which currently employs more than 5,000 people in North Carolina, will expand manufacturing capabilities across the state to support the agreement with Meta. The expansion could increase Corning’s employment levels in the state by 15 to 20 percent, reinforcing North Carolina’s role as a manufacturing hub for optical fiber and cable.
“Our partnership with Corning supports our goal of strengthening domestic manufacturing, supporting good jobs in North Carolina, and building a foundation for the next era of American innovation,” said Dan Sachs, Meta’s vice president of public policy – state and local.
Fiber supply challenges
Meta isn’t the only customer that has driven Corning to expand its manufacturing plants to accommodate a large customer.
Corning announced in October 2025 that it would acquire Lot 11 in Trivium Corporate Center to expand its manufacturing operations. As part of that agreement, the company agreed to hire and maintain a minimum of 132 jobs at an average salary exceeding $65,000/year, and to invest between $170 million and $267.9 million under the terms of an economic development agreement with the City of Hickory and Catawba County.
Earlier, in March 2023, Corning initially opened its Hickory, NC campus. The Trivium campus has two facilities for manufacturing optical cable, which Corning said will support current and future fiber broadband deployments.
Earlier, in 2022, Corning expanded its optical cable manufacturing capacity, based on a long-term relationship with AT&T as the carrier expanded its fiber service. Corning will build a new cable manufacturing facility in Gilbert, Arizona, located in the Greater Phoenix region, adding approximately 250 jobs.
Despite this progress, Corning will have to help its customers navigate an ongoing fiber cable shortage in the United States, driven by data center expansions for AI and by federal broadband (BEAD) funding, which is causing significant project delays and extending lead times.
As of early 2026, lead times for ribbon fiber are over 60 weeks, while loose tube fiber for outdoor, rural, and FTTH projects is backordered into the third quarter of this year.
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