In 2024, Mark Zuckerberg publicly spoke about his Hawaii property for the very first time. One detail that has drawn attention for years also came up during the interview: the underground shelter famously described as a “Doomsday bunker”. The Facebook founder has expanded his property on Kauai’s north shore to around 1,500 acres, and reports about a secret underground facility on the compound have made headlines.In his interview with Bloomberg’s “The Circuit”, Zuckerberg addressed the reports on camera for the first time. He confirmed that the underground structure exists, but pushed back on the idea that his Hawaii ranch is some kind of Doomsday bunker.
Mark Zuckerberg calls it a ‘basement’
Asked about the underground facility, Zuckerberg downplayed the reports. “I think that’s a little shelter, a basement,” said Zuckerberg.He explained that the property includes a main house, an office and storage areas, along with what he described as a hurricane shelter.“We have the basic house that we built and an office out there and just a bunch of storage space and whatever you want to call it, hurricane shelter or whatever. I think it got blown out of proportion that whole shelter, that the whole ranch was some sort of Doomsday bunker which is not true,” he added.
Underground shelter is nearly 4,500 square feet
While Zuckerberg described it as a small part of the property, planning documents obtained by HawaiiNewsNow show that the underground “storm shelter” is nearly 4,500 square feet.That makes the shelter roughly the size of an NBA basketball court. The documents also show a tunnel connecting the underground shelter to ground level. The size is notable in Hawaii, where basements are relatively uncommon.“In all my years of selling real estate, I’ve maybe sold maybe one or two homes with basements,” said long-time Hawaii realtor Tom Tezak.Tezak said he has never seen a basement of this size in Hawaii. However, considering the scale of Zuckerberg’s entire property, he said the shelter is relatively small.“Very infrequently do we come across homes the magnitude of his compound,” said Tezak.
Zuckerberg says ranch is about more than the shelter
The underground structure is only one part of Zuckerberg’s large Kauai property. He said the ranch also focuses on raising cattle for fresh beef. Tezak also said such a shelter is not necessarily surprising given the size of the property and Zuckerberg’s financial resources.“It’s not unreasonable when you have a financial ability to do something that protect you and your family. It doesn’t surprise me,” Tezak noted.
