According to CoinMeta, as reported by Coinbureau, Meta took advantage of tax incentives from the 1980s by classifying equipment at its AI data center as experimental “pilot models,” and thus applied for a research tax credit of $3.9 billion. This credit amount soared from $700 million in 2023 to $2 billion in 2024, and then reached $3.9 billion last year, allowing reportedly to reduce its federal taxes by 71%. In addition, The New York Times reported that Meta classified Mark Zuckerberg as a “researcher” in order to apply for a tax reduction of $355 million related to his 2013 salary of $4 billion. The United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is currently seeking to recoup these saved taxes.