Meta’s undersea cable network is a portfolio of submarine telecommunications projects it invests in and develops with partners—not one completed cable spanning six continents. The portfolio includes systems Meta reported operating or complete, routes still being built, and projects with future target dates. “Six continents” is best understood as a broad portfolio framing, not proof that every route is already connected or that a single cable reaches all six.
What Meta’s undersea cable portfolio includes
Subsea cables carry data between continents through fiber-optic strands on the ocean floor. They connect landing points in different countries to the wider internet, making them essential infrastructure for services such as messaging, video calls, and cloud traffic. Meta’s announcements describe a growing set of routes across the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian Ocean, and around Africa and Asia. Meta works with project partners; the available announcements do not establish that it owns every system outright.
Each project has its own route, partners, build schedule, and status. The table separates the announced or reported status from target dates and specifications. Length and capacity figures below are claims attributed to Meta or the named project partner, not independent measurements.
| System | Status and route | Published scale or capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Waterworth | Announced by Meta in February 2025; planned. Its announced route names the United States, India, Brazil, South Africa, and other key regions. | More than 50,000 km across five major continents. Meta calls it the world’s longest subsea cable project once complete. (Meta, February 2025) |
| Petal | Announced by Meta in September 2026; planned between France and the United States, with service expected in 2029. | About 7,000 km, 1 Pbps designed capacity, and multi-core fiber at scale. (Meta, September 2026) |
| 2Africa core | Meta reported the core system complete in November 2025, connecting countries in Africa, Europe, and Asia. Pearls was then scheduled for 2026. | 33 countries and an estimated 3 billion people reached; Meta gave 45,000 km as the full system length with Pearls. (Meta, November 2025) |
| Candle | Announced by Meta in October 2025; planned to connect Japan, Taiwan, the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore, with a 2028 target. | 8,000 km and 570 Tbps. (Meta, October 2025) |
| Bifrost | Keppel says the system was completed in 2025. Meta’s October 2025 update described a route linking Southeast Asia and the United States, with Mexico then expected in 2026. | More than 20,000 km, according to Keppel. Meta’s earlier announcement discussed a combined capacity increase with Echo; see the route context below. |
| Echo | Meta’s October 2025 update described capacity delivered between Guam and California, with potential onward connectivity to Asia. | 260 Tbps, according to Meta (October 2025). |
| Apricot | Meta’s October 2025 update said service was available on part of the route between Japan, Taiwan, and Guam; extensions to the Philippines, Indonesia, and Singapore were planned. | 12,000 km and 290 Tbps, according to Meta (October 2025). |
The figures are not a like-for-like financial or engineering comparison. The cited material does not provide consistent costs, ownership shares, or commercial capacity allocations for every system.
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Which routes are operating, and which are still planned?
Waterworth: a large announced project, not a completed network
Meta announced Project Waterworth in February 2025 as a planned system longer than 50,000 km. The company described it as crossing five major continents and named the United States, India, Brazil, South Africa, and other key regions. Its “world’s longest” description refers to the project once complete; it should not be read as a claim that this route is already in service.
Petal: a planned France–U.S. link
Meta announced Petal in September 2026 as a roughly 7,000 km transatlantic system between France and the United States. The company says it is designed for 1 Pbps and will use multi-core fiber at scale, with service expected in 2029. Those are announced design specifications and a target schedule, not measured operating performance.
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2Africa: core reported complete; Pearls status needs distinction
In November 2025, Meta reported the core 2Africa system complete. The company said it connects 33 countries across Africa, Europe, and Asia, reaching an estimated 3 billion people. Meta described 45,000 km as the full system length including the Pearls extension, which was then scheduled for 2026. That announcement does not establish whether Pearls has since entered service, so the core system’s reported completion and the extension’s status should not be conflated.
Asia-Pacific and transpacific routes
Meta’s October 2025 portfolio update covered several distinct systems rather than one continuous cable. Candle was still planned, with a 2028 target. The update described Bifrost as connecting Southeast Asia and the United States, and Mexico as an expected extension for 2026; Keppel separately says Bifrost was completed in 2025. Echo was described as delivering capacity between Guam and California. Apricot was available on part of its route between Japan, Taiwan, and Guam, with further extensions planned.
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Meta’s 2021 announcement said Echo and Bifrost together would increase transpacific capacity by 70%. That was a historical announced target for the two systems combined, not a current measured result or a figure for either cable individually.
What “spanning six continents” does—and does not—mean
The phrase describes the geographic breadth of Meta’s portfolio, not a single cable route. Waterworth was announced as a five-continent project; other systems link regions in Africa, Europe, Asia, and the Americas, while the Pacific projects add further routes. The cited announcements do not prove that a finished Meta network currently serves every continent, nor that all named projects are complete. Several are plans with target dates, and project schedules can change.
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It is also useful to distinguish a cable system from internet coverage. A subsea route links landing points; it does not by itself provide service to every person or location along the route. Meta’s estimate that 2Africa could reach 3 billion people describes its potential reach, not a count of individual users with direct access to the cable.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Why Meta is investing in subsea capacity
Meta says subsea cables carry most intercontinental data traffic, but the company has published different estimates at different times. Its February 2025 Waterworth announcement said more than 95% of intercontinental traffic uses subsea cables. Its September 2026 Petal announcement put the figure at approximately 99%. These are company estimates from separate announcements, not one independently audited measurement, so they should not be combined or treated as a precise universal statistic.
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More routes and capacity can give large networks additional paths for moving data between regions and support growing demand. Route diversity can also matter when a route is disrupted: multiple paths may offer alternatives, although the announcements cited here do not quantify the resilience each system provides or guarantee uninterrupted service. Planned capacity, route length, and a system’s geographic reach are different measures; none alone proves how much traffic a specific user will experience.
How to read the capacity numbers
Petal’s 1 Pbps, Candle’s 570 Tbps, Echo’s 260 Tbps, and Apricot’s 290 Tbps are announced design or system-capacity figures attributed to Meta. They are not speed tests, typical connection speeds, or guarantees of capacity available to any one customer. Capacity also should not be compared without regard to whether the figure describes a planned design, a delivered system, or a particular segment. The announcements do not provide a uniform methodology for comparing every project.
The same qualification applies to project length and reach: a planned route’s announced kilometers do not show that the system has been laid, while a completion report applies to the system and scope specified by the source. For example, Meta’s completion statement concerned the 2Africa core; Pearls was a separately identified extension with a future schedule at that time.
What is established—and what remains unclear
- Established in company or partner announcements: Meta is involved in a portfolio of submarine cable projects with routes across several regions; the portfolio includes planned systems as well as systems described as complete, available, or delivering capacity.
- Not established consistently across the portfolio: the cost of each cable, Meta’s ownership share, how capacity is allocated commercially, and a common independent measurement of the published capacity claims.
- Status that should be treated as time-sensitive: the Waterworth and Candle build plans, Petal’s expected 2029 service, the Mexico connection associated with Bifrost, and the 2Africa Pearls extension. The cited dates describe what Meta or a partner reported at the time, not a guarantee that the schedule remains unchanged.
For readers asking whether Meta is building its own internet cables, the accurate answer is that Meta invests in and partners on large submarine cable systems. Its portfolio is significant, but the announced systems have different owners and partners, routes, and stages of completion; “Meta’s network” is a convenient portfolio description, not evidence of one wholly owned, finished global cable network.
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