Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan are doubling down on artificial intelligence, science and STEM education through both their philanthropic and corporate investments, according to a Fortune report.
The couple ledged $50 million to Sacramento State University to pay for state-of-the-art STEM labs and an AI center, Fortune reports. California Governor Gavin Newsom announced the gift on January 28 and tied it to a major redevelopment of three vacant state office buildings on Sacramento’s Capitol Mall into a downtown campus. The money from Zuckerberg and Meta will cover abatement, demolition and initial construction, and will make room for new student housing alongside academic space, including STEM facilities and the AI center.
Zuckerberg said the investments will strengthen communities and support the next generation of leaders and innovators. Newsom said the gift will help the school build its pipeline of talent for tech jobs, and that students need to be able to afford to live where they study.
$50 million gift backs AI and STEM expansion
California Governor Gavin Newsom announced the donation on January 28 as part of a broader plan to transform three vacant state office buildings on Sacramento's Capitol Mall into a downtown university campus.
The contribution from Meta and Zuckerberg will help fund demolition, site preparation and the initial construction phase of the project.The new campus is expected to include advanced STEM laboratories, an AI centre and student housing, with state officials framing the project as an investment in California's future workforce. Newsom said the donation would help Sacramento State strengthen its pipeline of talent for technology jobs and support students by expanding affordable housing options near campus.
In a statement cited by the report, Zuckerberg said the investments would help "strengthen our communities and support the next generation of leaders and innovators.
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The billionaire tax backdrop
The gift arrives as California considers a one-time 5 percent tax on billionaires’ wealth. Fortune notes that several prominent billionaires, including Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel and Craft Ventures’ David Sacks, have already moved their permanent residences out of state to avoid it.
Zuckerberg has made no public statement on the tax and is instead putting more money into California.
He owns a compound of 11 properties in Palo Alto’s Crescent Park neighbourhood, valued at more than $110 million, and Meta has a 57-acre headquarters campus in the area plus more than 400,000 square feet of office space in nearby Menlo Park.
Philanthropic strategy undergoes major shift
The Sacramento donation reflects a broader change in direction at the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI), the philanthropic organisation launched by Zuckerberg and Chan in 2015.
The couple recently announced that the majority of CZI's resources would be directed toward biomedical AI research, marking a shift from earlier priorities such as education and social justice initiatives.The organisation has increasingly focused on using artificial intelligence to accelerate scientific discovery and medical research. Central to that strategy is the Biohub network, a group of biomedical research institutes that aims to advance disease prevention and treatment through cutting-edge technologies.Speaking at a Biohub event in Redwood City last year, Zuckerberg described the Biohub model as one of the most impactful efforts undertaken by the organisation and said it would become the primary focus of its philanthropic work going forward.
AI at the centre of both Meta and CZI
The latest donation also highlights how Zuckerberg's philanthropic goals are increasingly aligned with Meta's broader AI ambitions. Meta has committed significant resources toward developing advanced AI systems and building infrastructure to support future AI-driven products and services.
Similarly, CZI is concentrating on AI-powered biomedical research, supporting work involving large-scale models for applications such as virtual cells, immune system research and disease prediction.The planned AI centre at Sacramento State fits into that vision by helping train future researchers, engineers and technology professionals while expanding access to advanced computing and STEM education.
Layoffs accompany new focus
The renewed emphasis on AI and biomedical research has also led to organisational changes. Earlier this year, CZI laid off around 70 employees, primarily at its Redwood City headquarters, as it streamlined operations around its updated mission.Despite those cuts, Zuckerberg and Chan have signalled that they see AI as a transformative force for the coming decade. In a recent blog post, the couple said they were optimistic about the opportunities ahead and believed advances in AI and science could help achieve some of humanity's long-term goals.