Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) AI bill just got so large that one of Silicon Valley's richest companies went back to Wall Street for help.

On April 30, Meta sold $25 billion of senior unsecured bonds across six tranches. The deal came a day after the Mark Zuckerberg–led company raised its 2026 capital expenditure forecast by $10 billion, to a new range of $125 billion to $145 billion. The capex hike, tied to AI infrastructure, rattled shareholders: Meta shares fell 9% the day after the announcement, in the biggest single-day slump since October.

That is what "Wall Street's credit card" means here. Zuckerberg did not personally borrow $25 billion, and Meta is not broke. This is not distress borrowing. It means the company is using the bond market to finance a large AI buildout rather than relying solely on its own cash flow.

The bond details show the scale and timeline for Meta to repay the borrowings. Meta's April 30 prospectus listed $3 billion of 4.55% notes due 2031, $2 billion of 4.875% notes due 2033, $6 billion of 5.25% notes due 2036, $4 billion of 6.2% ...