On the heels of announcements from giants such as Microsoft and Amazon, Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta is the latest in the tech industry to embrace nuclear power. 

Meta announced Tuesday that it is requesting proposals from nuclear energy developers in an attempt to harness nuclear energy for further artificial intelligence developments while meeting sustainability goals. 

The company is seeking to add between 1 to 4 gigawatts of new nuclear generation capacity within the United States, delivering that power in the early 2030s. A typical large nuclear reactor produces around 1 gigawatt of energy, which is the equivalent of one to four new reactors. 

“Supporting the development of clean energy must continue to be a priority as electric grids expand to accommodate growing energy needs,” the company said in a release. “At Meta, we believe nuclear energy will play a pivotal role in the transition to a cleaner, more reliable, and diversified electric grid.”

In its search for developers, Meta said it is looking for individuals who have experience in developing opportunities for new nuclear energy resources, such as Small Modular Reactors or larger facilities. 

Initial proposals are due Feb. 5 of next year. 

Meta, like other major tech companies, has sought to increase its capacity for renewable and clean energy in recent years. Most commonly, tech firms have invested in solar and wind projects.

While these projects don’t take as long to develop and construct compared to nuclear, they have a much shorter operational life as well as reliability in some regions. 

Meta admitted these challenges in its release Tuesday, saying the company has a “need” to engage in nuclear energy projects early on, starting in development. Not only will this increase the tech giant’s clean energy capacity, but Meta said scaling developments help offer the chance to reduce the cost of such projects. 

“As we look ahead to our next decade of innovation and growth, we are planning for our data center energy needs while simultaneously contributing to a reliable grid and advancing our sustainability commitments,” the company said. “Building on our efforts to bring new clean and renewable energy to the grid — including solar, wind, battery storage, and, most recently, geothermal — we continue to look for innovative ways to enable additional clean energy resources.”

Like other major nuclear energy investments, this is primarily tied to AI advancements, particularly through data centers. Along with manufacturing and electrification, data center growth has driven up energy demand across the country. 

In October, data and analytics firm Wood Mackenzie estimated that data centers were on track to consume around 20-25 gigawatts of hourly energy demand on average. This is roughly equivalent to 4-5% of all electricity consumption in the U.S. At this rate, big players across the tech industry are grasping for any opportunity to increase available power for AI. 

Meta’s announcement comes just months after Microsoft said it would enter a purchase agreement with Constellation Energy to restore and buy nuclear power from the Three Mile Island plant in Pennsylvania, the site of the worst nuclear accident in U.S. history. 

In October, Google also announced a purchase agreement with Kairos Power to buy nuclear energy produced by several SMRs by the early 2030s. Around the same time, Amazon also said it would invest in three SMR projects in Virginia and Washington state to support its operations, data centers, and local grids. 

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Plus, Amazon also announced earlier this year that it would be colocating a data center with Talen Energy’s Susquehanna nuclear plant in Pennsylvania. 

While many of these projects will take several years to receive approval, the energy industry won’t have to wait long to see big movement for nuclear power. In early 2025, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is expected to release its final decision on the reopening of the Palisades Nuclear facility on Lake Michigan. If approved, the 800-megawatt facility is anticipated to come back online by the end of next year — becoming the first decommissioned plant in the U.S. to do so.