RICHLAND PARISH - Wednesday, Governor Jeff Landry announced that Facebook and Instagram parent company Meta is establishing a new AI development center in north Louisiana. 

The new center, which comes from a $10 billion investment, will result in 500 or more new direct jobs, more than 1,000 indirect jobs, and 5,000 construction jobs during its building. 

LED expects the project, one of the largest private capital investments in the state’s history, to spark new economic activity and investments throughout northeast Louisiana as multiple industries benefit from the billions of dollars invested. Meta makes a concerted effort to source labor and materials locally, and partners with local schools and organizations to advance STEAM education and digital skills that can be used to compete in the digital workforce, read the press release from the governor's office. 

“This project is an example of what Louisiana can accomplish when economic development partners play offense rather than waiting for good projects to come to them,” LED Secretary Susan B. Bourgeois said. “Louisiana has been actively positioning itself as a hub for AI innovation, with plans to support startups, grow a skilled workforce, and shape forward-thinking policy. Meta’s historic investment is just the beginning of a bold strategy to drive economic growth through AI, expand and diversify the state’s tech sector, and prove to the world that when Louisiana says that we are ready to compete on the global stage, we mean business.”