Meta's $145 billion AI build-out gets new leader
What's the story
Santosh Janardhan, Meta's long-serving head of infrastructure and co-head of engineering, has announced his decision to leave the company in 2027. In an internal memo seen by CNBC, Janardhan said he believes "it's time to pass the baton" to David Brown. Brown, a former senior vice president at Amazon Web Services (AWS), joined Meta in July this year.
Leadership transition
Transition part of Zuckerberg's strategy to expand data center operations
The leadership transition comes as part of CEO Mark Zuckerberg's strategy to expand Meta's data center operations under new leadership.
Brown will now formally lead these efforts and serve as chief technical officer of the Meta Compute initiative.
This project is led by President and Vice Chairman Dina Powell McCormick and technical leader Daniel Gross.
The change comes as Meta ramps up spending on AI infrastructure, with 2026 capital expenditure projected at $135 billion-$145 billion.
Transition support
Janardhan to assist Brown through Q1 2027
Janardhan has said he will help Brown through the first quarter of 2027 as part of "the transition."
He praised Brown's experience in building and operating reliable infrastructure for a variety of demanding workloads.
Janardhan said in his memo, "As we make the next set of choices about our priorities, this is the right time for Dave to take the lead in shaping that work."
Career highlights
Janardhan has been with Facebook since October 2009
Since joining Facebook in October 2009, Janardhan has been instrumental in building the company's software, hardware, networks, and data center infrastructure.
He will continue to serve as CTO of Meta Compute after his departure from the infrastructure role.
In his memo, Janardhan emphasized how infrastructure has evolved from an enabling function into a strategic advantage for Meta, with its expanded data center fleet and custom silicon program.