OpenAI and partners are building a massive AI data center in Texas

On Tuesday, OpenAI announced a partnership with Oracle to develop 4.5 gigawatts of additional data center capacity for its Stargate AI infrastructure platform in the US. The expansion, which TechCrunch reports is part of a $30 billion-per-year deal between OpenAI and Oracle, will reportedly bring OpenAI's total Stargate capacity under development to over 5 gigawatts.

The data center has taken root in Abilene, Texas, a city of 127,000 located 150 miles west of Fort Worth. The city, which serves as the commercial hub of a 19-county region known as the "Big Country," offers a location with existing tech employment ecosystem, including Dyess Air Force Base and three universities. Abilene's economy has evolved over time from its agricultural and livestock roots to embrace technology and manufacturing sectors.

"We have signed a deal for an additional 4.5 gigawatts of capacity with oracle as part of stargate. easy to throw around numbers, but this is a gigantic infrastructure project," wrote OpenAI CEO Sam Altman on X. "We are planning to significantly expand the ambitions of stargate past the $500 billion commitment we announced in January."

The new agreement builds on OpenAI's initial $500 billion commitment announced at the White House in January to invest in 10 gigawatts of AI infrastructure over four years. The company estimates that the 4.5 GW expansion will generate jobs across construction and operations roles, including direct full-time positions, short-term construction work, and indirect manufacturing and service jobs.

The 5 gigawatts of total capacity refers to the amount of electrical power these data centers will consume when fully operational—enough to power roughly 4.4 million American homes. It turns out that telling users their every idea is brilliant requires a lot of energy.