Key Notes
- Dave Brown will succeed Santosh Janardhan as Meta’s infrastructure leader.
- Meta projects 2026 capital spending of $135 billion-$145 billion.
- Janardhan will support the handover through the first quarter of 2027.
Meta Platforms (Nasdaq: META) has picked former Amazon Web Services executive Dave Brown to lead its infrastructure business as longtime chief Santosh Janardhan prepares to leave in early 2027. The handover puts a new leader in charge of the systems behind one of the technology industry’s largest AI investment programs.
Meta confirmed the succession on Wednesday, Reuters reported. Janardhan has worked at the company since 2009 and will help Brown through the first quarter of next year.
An AWS Veteran Takes the Infrastructure Role
Brown joined Meta in July after nearly two decades at Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN). His responsibilities will also include serving as chief technical officer of Meta Compute, the initiative overseen by Dina Powell McCormick and Daniel Gross, according to an internal memo obtained by CNBC.
The role extends beyond buying more processors. Meta needs to turn spending on servers, networking, power and data centers into computing capacity that its AI products and advertising systems can use reliably. Brown’s experience operating cloud infrastructure will now be applied inside a company building primarily for its own services.
A $145 Billion Spending Ceiling
Meta’s latest outlook puts 2026 capital expenditures at $135 billion-$145 billion, including principal payments on finance leases. That narrowed the previous $130 billion-$145 billion range by raising the lower end, without increasing the ceiling.
The cash demands are already visible. Third-quarter operating cash flow was $32.79 billion, while capital expenditures reached $34.91 billion, leaving free cash flow at negative $2.12 billion. Revenue rose to $64.6 billion in the same quarter, as detailed in the company’s earnings report.
Infrastructure Choices Reach the Balance Sheet
Meta has also turned to outside capital. Its October stock offerings sought roughly $35 billion to help fund expansion, adding financing decisions to the engineering work behind the buildout.
The company said in its earnings outlook that it was still developing its 2027 budget and capacity plans while expecting to invest aggressively. Brown will take responsibility for infrastructure as those plans are completed, with Janardhan staying through the first quarter to support the transition.
