Meta's AI Cloud Announcement Boosts Stock 9.3% on July 1

Meta Platforms shares surged 9.3% on July 1 2026, closing at $615.55, the strongest intraday gain since April. The jump was triggered by reports that the Menlo Park‑based company is preparing a new AI‑focused cloud business, internally dubbed “Meta Compute,” to sell excess GPU‑based compute power to external customers. The move is seen as a way to monetize the massive infrastructure investments made for the company’s own AI models.

The market reaction extended to rival AI‑cloud providers: CoreWeave fell as much as 14% and Dutch‑listed Nebius Group dropped 17% in the same session, reflecting investor concerns that Meta’s scale could undercut niche operators. Meta’s plan reportedly includes a platform similar to AWS Bedrock for accessing proprietary and third‑party AI models and a direct rental service for raw GPU capacity. The initiative is overseen by Santosh Janardhan, Daniel Gross and Dina Powell McCormick. Meta declined to comment, stating the project is still under development.