October 22， 2025
A consortium of leading technology firms, including OpenAI, Oracle, and Vantage Data Centers, announced on Wednesday the development of a major new data center campus in Port Washington, Wisconsin. This initiative is a cornerstone of the ambitious "Stargate" project, a multi-billion dollar effort designed to secure the United States' leadership in the global artificial intelligence race.
The new campus, named "Lighthouse," is part of a broader partnership between OpenAI and Oracle, first announced in July, to develop an additional 4.5 gigawatts of data center capacity. The Stargate project itself is a massive undertaking, with an estimated scale of up to $500 billion and a goal of 10 gigawatts of capacity. The initiative also includes Japanese technology investor SoftBank Group, which is establishing the project's first AI data center in Abilene, Texas.
This massive infrastructure push is driven by the exploding demand for generative AI services like OpenAI's ChatGPT and Microsoft's Copilot, which require immense computing resources. OpenAI and its key investor, Microsoft, are among the tech giants investing heavily in the data center capacity needed to power these advanced AI systems.
The strategic importance of AI has been elevated to a top national priority. The growing integration of AI into sensitive sectors, including defense, coupled with competitive pressures from China, prompted the project's unveiling by President Donald Trump at the White House in January.
Scheduled for completion in 2028, the construction of the Lighthouse campus is projected to create over 4,000 skilled construction jobs, with a majority being union positions. Vantage Data Centers, which is backed by private equity firm Silver Lake and asset manager DigitalBridge, will invest over $15 billion in the Port Washington site.
Upon completion, Vantage and Oracle are expected to generate more than 1,000 long-term operational jobs at the campus, in addition to thousands of indirect jobs in the surrounding community. Combined with other Stargate campuses developed in collaboration with Oracle, the project will deliver over 4.5 gigawatts of IT capacity. Last month, OpenAI, Oracle, and SoftBank further detailed their commitment by announcing plans for five new AI data centers across the United States to continue building out the Stargate network.
SOURCE Reuters
