December 5, 2025 OpenAI has made another strategic hire from the infrastructure sector, appointing Jeremy Mickler, a former design director at colocation giant Equinix, as its land development lead. The move underscores the intensifying competition for talent and resources as AI companies embark on building massive, next-generation data centers to power their models. Mickler, who spent nearly a decade at Equinix overseeing global design and construction for a portfolio of more than 270 data centers worldwide, will join OpenAI's growing internal infrastructure team. His primary focus will be to support the development of "Stargate," the company's ambitious, multi-billion-dollar project to build frontier AI compute clusters. In a statement, Mickler emphasized the scale and impact of the role, saying his objective is to "de-risk multibillion-dollar projects at GPU scale and accelerate efficient delivery." He described land development as the point "where vision meets reality," noting that the choices made "will influence communities, infrastructure, and possibility for years to come." The hire is part of a broader pattern of OpenAI aggressively recruiting top engineering and operational talent from leading tech and infrastructure firms. In recent months, the company has successfully hired senior data center experts from Apple, Amazon Web Services, Google, Meta, Tesla, and Cloudflare, among others. This talent acquisition spree highlights the critical and complex challenge of physically constructing the infrastructure required for advanced AI, which goes far beyond leasing space in traditional colocation facilities. OpenAI's strategy involves developing several Stargate mega-clusters within the United States, alongside multiple international projects in partnership with firms like Crusoe, Vantage, and Related. Securing and preparing large tracts of land with adequate power, cooling, and connectivity is a foundational and increasingly contentious step in this build-out. Mickler's extensive experience in navigating the complexities of global data center site selection and construction at Equinix positions him as a key figure in executing this capital-intensive vision. Source: datacenterdynamics
OpenAI Recruits Equinix Veteran Jeremy Mickler to Lead Land Development for Stargate Data Centers
