Corning shares climbed 5.6% during Monday's United States session after the company announced a multibillion-dollar agreement with Amazon to supply optical fibre and networking technology for the technology giant's rapidly expanding artificial intelligence data centre network in the United States.
Amazon is expected to spend billions of dollars over several years under the agreement, which will support the construction and connection of new data centres while creating approximately 1,000 jobs at Corning's manufacturing facilities in North Carolina.
Amazon shares were little changed following the announcement.
The companies said Corning's fibre optic technology will play a critical role in supporting the growing demands of AI infrastructure, enabling high-speed connections between data centres, server racks and advanced processors.
“Amazon’s data centers power the services millions of people and businesses rely on every day,” the companies said in a press release. “Corning’s fiber optics are a critical piece of that infrastructure, and together, these investments help fuel the U.S. economic engine.”
The partnership will also expand Corning's fibre optic technician training programme in North Carolina, further strengthening the state's position as a key hub for technology infrastructure investment.
Amazon Web Services Chief Executive Matt Garman said Amazon's investments in North Carolina have already generated more than 26,000 jobs.
The company separately committed last year to invest US$10 billion (A$14.13 billion) in new data centres across the state.
Corning, founded 175 years ago, has emerged as a major beneficiary of surging AI-related investment. Its shares have more than doubled this year and are up nearly sixfold since the end of 2023 as demand for high-performance data centre infrastructure accelerates.
The company has secured several significant agreements linked to the AI buildout.
In May, Nvidia announced a multiyear commercial and technology partnership with Corning as part of an arrangement that will see the glass manufacturer build three advanced manufacturing facilities dedicated entirely to producing components for the chipmaker.
While Corning is widely recognised for producing display glass used in Apple's iPhone, its optical communications division remains the company's largest and fastest-growing business.
Since developing optical fibre technology for long-distance communications in 1970, Corning has supplied millions of miles of optical fibre cable.
Those networks have become increasingly important as hyperscale cloud providers and AI companies seek to connect thousands of high-performance processors within massive data centre campuses.
Chief Executive Wendell Weeks said the latest agreement strengthens both the company's growth outlook and the domestic manufacturing sector.
“This agreement with Amazon represents a significant milestone for Corning and for American manufacturing,” Weeks said in the press release, adding it will “lead the way toward building a resilient U.S. manufacturing base.”
Corning's market capitalisation stands at $161.4 billion.
