OpenAI and Oracle expand Stargate project with 4.5 GW capacity boost

OpenAI and Oracle are expanding the Stargate AI infrastructure project with an additional 4.5 GW of data center capacity, bringing the total U.S. development to over 5 GW. This massive buildout advances OpenAI’s commitment to invest $500 billion in 10 GW of AI infrastructure over four years, while creating over 100,000 jobs across construction, operations, and related industries.

What you should know: The expansion represents a significant leap in AI infrastructure development, with real operations already underway.

• The combined capacity will power over 2 million chips across Stargate facilities, designed specifically for AI workloads that traditional data centers can’t handle.
• Construction of Stargate I in Abilene, Texas is progressing with parts of the facility now operational, including early training and inference workloads.
• Oracle began delivering Nvidia GB200 racks last month, enabling OpenAI to “push the limits of next-generation frontier research.”

Job creation impact: The project is generating substantial employment across multiple sectors and skill levels.

• Over 100,000 jobs are expected across construction, operations, manufacturing, and services, including both direct full-time positions and indirect roles.
• The Abilene site has already created thousands of jobs, with specialized roles for “electricians, equipment operators, and technicians hailing from more than 20 states.”
• Additional employment opportunities will expand as operations scale across multiple facilities.

Strategic partnerships: The initiative involves multiple major players beyond Oracle, creating a comprehensive AI infrastructure ecosystem.

• SoftBank, a Japanese investment firm, continues as a key partner, with OpenAI noting “strong momentum” in site assessments and reimagining data center design for advanced AI.
• Microsoft will continue providing cloud services for OpenAI through the Stargate platform, maintaining their existing partnership structure.
• CoreWeave also participates in ongoing data center partnerships within the broader Stargate framework.

Global expansion plans: OpenAI is extending Stargate internationally through “OpenAI for Countries,” offering infrastructure partnerships with national governments.

• The initiative helps build local AI data center capacity in coordination with the U.S. administration.
• These secure facilities will “support the sovereignty of a country’s data, build new local industries, and make it easy to customize AI and leverage their data in a private and compliant way.”

Why this matters: The AI boom is straining existing infrastructure, requiring purpose-built facilities designed from the ground up for AI workloads.

• Large AI models demand thousands of GPUs (graphics processing units), advanced cooling systems, and enormous electricity consumption, especially for training.
• Traditional data centers simply can’t meet the scale or energy demands of modern AI systems.
• Stargate aims to provide sufficient capacity for growing AI demand across scientific research, healthcare, automation, defense, and finance sectors.