Meta is testing robots to maintain its AI data centers, potentially replacing some technical roles.

Meta is testing robots to maintain the data centers that support its artificial intelligence (AI) systems, with applications including replacing network cables, rebooting servers, moving racks, and conducting equipment inspections. The robots currently being tested by Meta come from Watney Robotics, Kinova, and ABB. These robots still face challenges such as slow operation, limited battery life, difficulty with visual detection, and struggles navigating dense cables and complex obstacles, requiring human supervision and assistance. However, one Meta employee estimated that if cable-replacement robots become fully mature, up to 80% of tasks in some roles could be automated by machines. This figure is the employee’s personal estimate, not Meta’s official forecast. As AI infrastructure continues to expand, Meta is confronting two key issues: a shortage of data center technicians, and efforts to use robots to reduce operational and maintenance costs. Meta noted that the U.S. is experiencing the largest infrastructure construction boom since World War II, and the company is facing a severe shortage of skilled workers, hence “more workers are needed, not fewer.” But employees worry that robots could reduce demand for experienced technicians, shifting remaining work to lower-paid staff who would carry out tasks based on AI-generated instructions. Currently, Meta’s robots cannot independently complete complex repairs, but their further development may redefine whether the expansion of AI data centers will create more jobs or accelerate automation of technical positions.