When tech giants decide to move, they do so with the force of an earthquake. This morning, January 9, 2026, Meta Platforms announced a series of agreements that redefine the relationship between the tech and energy sectors: twenty-year contracts with three nuclear companies to secure up to 6.6 gigawatts of power by 2035. This is not just a company announcement, but an unmistakable signal of where the artificial intelligence industry is headed.

Those who follow the tech world closely know that artificial intelligence faces a problem that goes beyond algorithms: energy. Machine learning models, especially generative ones like Large Language Models, require an amount of electricity that dwarfs any other computing application. A single modern data center can consume as much as a medium-sized city, and Meta is building Prometheus, its next-generation supercluster in New Albany, Ohio, designed to push the boundaries of AI research toward what Zuckerberg calls "personal superintelligence for everyone."

The Three Strategic Partners: Vistra, TerraPower and Oklo

Meta's strategy is based on three complementary strands that demonstrate a sophisticated understanding of energy market dynamics. On the one hand, the Menlo Park group has signed agreements with Vistra , the operator of existing nuclear power plants in Ohio and Pennsylvania. On the other, it has partnered with TerraPower , the company co-founded by Bill Gates that is developing next-generation reactors, and with Oklo , an advanced nuclear startup whose main investors include Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI.

The agreement with Vistra represents the most immediate component of the strategy. Meta will purchase over 2,100 MW from the Perry and Davis-Besse plants in Ohio, under a 20-year contract that will begin producing energy by the end of 2026. This will be complemented by capacity expansions (so-called "uprates") for an additional 433 MW distributed between the two Ohio plants and the Beaver Valley plant in Pennsylvania. These are the largest nuclear upgrades ever supported by a corporate customer in the United States.

The agreement with TerraPower, on the other hand, is medium-term. Meta will finance the development of two Natrium reactors, an advanced liquid sodium technology that promises greater efficiency and safety than traditional designs. These plants are expected to enter operation between 2030 and 2032, with the possibility of extending the partnership to six additional reactors by 2035. TerraPower is already building its first demonstration plant in Wyoming, and the agreement with Meta provides the financial certainty that could significantly accelerate the technology's commercial development.

Oklo represents the boldest bet. The company is developing the Aurora Powerhouse, a compact modular reactor based on a fast-reactor design that can use both fresh fuel and reprocessed material. The nuclear campus planned for Pike County, Ohio, could reach a capacity of 1.2 GW by 2034, with the first phase operational as early as 2030. Meta will not limit itself to purchasing energy: the agreement includes prepayment and direct financing mechanisms that will allow Oklo to proceed with greater certainty in the project's development.

The Context: An Energy Race That Engulfs All of Big Tech

To understand the significance of these agreements, they must be seen in the broader context of the energy revolution sweeping the technology sector. According to Goldman Sachs estimates, data center electricity demand will grow 165% by 2030 compared to 2023 levels. The International Energy Agency predicts that global data centers will consume approximately 945 TWh annually by the end of the decade, a figure equivalent to Japan's entire electricity consumption.

Meta is not alone in this race. In the past year, Microsoft signed a 20-year agreement to reactivate Three Mile Island's Unit 1 (renamed the Crane Clean Energy Center), Google entered into a partnership with Kairos Power to build seven Small Modular Reactors, and Amazon is moving forward with SMR projects through agreements with X-energy and strategic acquisitions such as the Cumulus campus at the Susquehanna Power Plant. However, today's announcement positions Meta as the largest corporate buyer of nuclear power in American history , also considering the 1.1 GW agreement signed in June 2025 with Constellation Energy for the Clinton Power Plant in Illinois.

Timeline of the Meta-Nuclear Accords

Implications for Investors: Short, Medium and Long Term

The market's reaction was clear. In the hours following the announcement, Oklo soared as much as 19%, while Vistra rose 16%. The ripple effect spread across the entire sector: NuScale Power, another SMR developer, rose more than 4%, while uranium producers like Centrus Energy and Cameco benefited from the general enthusiasm. As Dan Ives of Wedbush Securities noted, this news "reaffirms hyperscalers' commitment to harnessing new energy sources to fuel the AI revolution."

Short-Term Outlook

In the short term, the nuclear sector could continue to benefit from positive momentum. However, it's important to distinguish between the two situations: Vistra already has operating assets and will generate immediate revenue from the Meta deal. Oklo and TerraPower, on the other hand, are still in the development phase and their projects won't produce energy before 2030-2032. For active traders, this means the two categories of stocks will respond to different drivers: Vistra to corporate fundamentals and quarterly results, while Oklo and similar stocks will respond to regulatory and technical progress on their respective programs.

Medium-Term Outlook

Looking ahead to the next two to three years, the key issue will be execution. New-generation reactors promise lower costs and shorter construction times compared to traditional nuclear, but these promises have yet to be demonstrated at commercial scale. TerraPower estimates costs of $50-60 per MWh at full capacity, while Oklo aims for $80-130 per MWh. If these targets are met, a huge potential market would open up. However, if significant delays or cost overruns were to emerge, current valuations could prove excessive.

Long-Term Perspectives

In the long term, we are facing a potential paradigm shift. Artificial intelligence is transforming nuclear power from a declining sector to a critical infrastructure for the digital future. The data is clear: in the US, data center electricity demand could reach 400 TWh by 2030, and renewables alone cannot guarantee the 24/7 reliability required by AI loads. Nuclear power offers consistent, low-emission, scalable "baseload" energy. If SMR technologies live up to their promise, we could witness a new nuclear era fueled by Silicon Valley.

Stocks to Watch

For those wishing to position themselves on the topic, here is an overview of the main listed stocks with exposure to nuclear power for data centers. Oklo (OKLO) represents the most speculative bet but also the one with the greatest upside potential in the event of technological success. Vistra (VST) offers a more defensive profile, with existing assets and already visible cash flows. Constellation Energy (CEG) remains the leading traditional nuclear operator, with a diversified portfolio and existing agreements with Meta and Microsoft. On the uranium front, Cameco (CCJ) and Centrus Energy (LEU) stand to benefit from any nuclear expansion, while NuScale Power (SMR) competes directly with Oklo and TerraPower in the modular reactor segment.

Today marks a turning point. Meta has placed its bet on the energy that will fuel the artificial intelligence of the future. Whether this was a visionary intuition or a costly gamble, we'll find out in the coming years. Meanwhile, Wall Street has already begun to price nuclear energy no longer as an ESG or niche issue, but as critical infrastructure for the AI era.