AT&T, Corning Sign $3B Fiber Expansion Deal

AT&T and Corning signed a multi-year agreement valued at more than $3 billion for Corning to supply fiber and cable. The deal supports AT&T's goal of extending fiber to 60 million locations by the end of 2030. AT&T said its fiber households use more than 1 terabyte of data monthly on average and expects 2 to 2.5 terabytes by 2030. Corning will supply through U.S. manufacturing. AT&T said the financial impact is already in its second-quarter earnings guidance. CEO John Stankey said at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology Conference: "Fiber and fiber broadband is a superior product." CFO Pascal Desroches said at the 2026 Mizuho Technology Conference: "AI doesn't exist without our connectivity … plain and simple," and that data consumption will continue to go up under AI. Light Reading reported the agreement as valued at more than $1 billion and as an expanded purchase deal including Corning's Evolv FlexNAP with Multifiber Pushlok Technology that is BEAD and Build America Buy America compliant. Multiple other sources put the value at more than $3 billion. Verizon earlier struck a multi-year multibillion-dollar Corning deal for more than 80 million miles of high-density optical fiber through 2032, targeting up to 50 million broadband passings in a 30-year partnership using Contour Flow ribbon cable. AT&T is passing 28.3 million locations and on pace for 30 million-plus by end of 2025; it also cites its Gigapower joint venture with BlackRock and open-access agreements. Corning has fiber deals with Zayo, AWS and Nvidia.