Meta has been labeling the Nvidia chips it buys for AI data centers “pilot models” since late 2024 so they qualify for a federal research tax credit, according to the New York Times. The credit cut Meta’s taxes by $3.9 billion in 2025, up from $2 billion in 2024 and $700 million in 2023, which the Times found makes Meta the biggest user of the credit among public companies. Meta’s own filings warn investors the IRS could claw some of it back, naming the research credit as the main source of uncertainty, and its reserve for IRS disputes has grown to $18.74 billion from $12.9 billion. Meta spokesman Andy Stone said Meta is using incentives Congress created to encourage domestic research spending.
