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Stargate AI explained: What's in the $500 billion project
Co-led by OpenAI and Softbank, Stargate AI aims to invest $500 billion in new AI data centers and infrastructure to help U.S.-based AI innovation, but it has raised concerns.
On Jan. 21, 2025, the Trump administration announced a new AI infrastructure project called Stargate, led by the private sector and OpenAI. With a total investment of $500 billion over the next four years, this is a substantial financial undertaking intended to strengthen AI innovation in the U.S.
The announcement came shortly after President Donald Trump's inauguration. In the first few weeks of his second term in office, the president signed several tech-related executive orders -- such as his EO on cryptocurrency -- and shared he has complaints with the EU regarding its regulations over Big Tech.
Stargate AI launched as AI dominates media headlines. Advances in generative AI capabilities have been popular with both public and corporate entities, while large-scale models such as ChatGPT, DeepSeek and Grok 3 are attracting international attention. As competition within the AI sector heats up, the need for substantial infrastructure becomes greater -- and this is what Stargate aims to address. Yet, the project has received mixed reactions.
What is the goal of the Stargate AI project?
On a practical level, the goal of the Stargate AI project is to expand existing AI infrastructure for OpenAI by building large-scale data centers for additional support across the nation. The $500 billion total investment has not yet been allocated, but an initial $100 billion is being immediately deployed for building two data centers in Abilene, Texas. Construction has begun and is expected to conclude before the end of 2025. These data centers will help train and run the AI models that OpenAI is developing. The project announcement states that building the infrastructure will create numerous jobs.
More broadly, the Stargate AI project is part of the larger goal of establishing the United States as a leader in AI innovation. In its statement, OpenAI described the Stargate project as one that will "not only support the re-industrialization of the U.S. but also provide a strategic capability to protect the national security of America and its allies." Participants intend for this project to make a global statement; in Trump's announcement, he described the project as the largest AI infrastructure project in history.
Who is involved in the Stargate AI project?
Although Trump announced Stargate, the actual project is co-led by several private companies. OpenAI -- the artificial intelligence research organization -- is the primary company attached. Additional technology partners include Microsoft, Nvidia, Oracle and Arm. The computing system will be built and operated by a collaboration between OpenAI, Oracle and Nvidia.
There are plans for the $500 billion investment, but the first deployment of $100 billion comes from an initial group of equity funders -- SoftBank, OpenAI, Oracle and MGX. Softbank and OpenAI are the project's co-leaders, with Softbank assuming financial responsibility and OpenAI assuming operational responsibility.
In addition to this suite of formal partners, Stargate is now accepting requests from potential partners to construct the data centers. These partners will include land and power companies as well as architecture and engineering firms.
Benefits and opportunities
Companies across the corporate landscape have embraced AI for tasks such as intelligence automation and greater analysis and understanding. With new advances consistently released, it is evident that the AI sector will continue to evolve -- if it can receive adequate support. By investing $500 billion in AI infrastructure, OpenAI, Softbank and the other partners are laying the foundations for this future innovation.
The benefits and opportunities of this AI expansion include the following:
- The empowering of AI researchers with better infrastructure and support.
- The expansion of available AI products and services by organizations in various industries such as healthcare and financial services.
- The creation of jobs, which OpenAI estimates could reach 100,000 in number.
- The chance for the United States to lead the world in AI development.
Ethical, environmental and governance concerns
A large investment in technical infrastructure could provide the support necessary to power considerable innovation -- and that is the intention of Stargate's partners. However, the practical implementation of this large-scale project is more complex.
With AI, there is a risk of bias and misinformation. Depending on the large language models used and the regulations applied, an AI program can carry biases from training that humans are vulnerable to, all while masquerading as a purely objective tool. The opportunity for these algorithms to accidentally discriminate against specific groups -- such as during hiring protocols -- has shown how important it is for all AI to be placed under clear regulations. This is equally true with misinformation; misuse of AI can lead to deepfakes and false narratives, which can cause serious harm. The scale and scope of Stargate's AI operations mean that any bias would be amplified, so there is concern about overusing truly objective data.
Another concern associated with Stargate's AI infrastructure is the environmental effect of data centers. Since the centers require a lot of power to compute vast quantities of data, those powered by electricity may drain the local grid. Data centers also use water to liquid-cool the servers, which increases overall water usage, and use microchips made of nonrenewable resources. The creation of Stargate's vast AI infrastructure has raised some concerns over its potential environmental impact. OpenAI has not announced how its centers will be powered but has expressed that it is open to working with construction partners from various backgrounds, including renewable and sustainable energies.
Lastly, the scale of Stargate makes governance a relevant and sensitive issue. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has previously testified in front of Congress and called for greater regulation of AI technology. Still, the company has not yet outlined its regulatory approach for Stargate AI operations.
Stargate project timeline and developments
Here are some key dates in the Stargate project:
- Jan. 21, 2025. Trump announces the Stargate AI project. He is joined by Altman, SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son and Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison. Elon Musk posts "They don't have the money" under OpenAI's Stargate Project announcement on X.
- Jan. 31, 2025. OpenAI updates its announcement to include information and resources on its plans and policies for prospective partners in land/power or architecture/engineering.
- May 30, 2025. The estimated date for when construction will be completed on the first Stargate data center in Abilene.
- Sept. 15, 2025. The estimated date for when construction will be completed on the second Stargate data center in Abilene.
Madeleine Streets is a senior content manager for WhatIs. She has also been published in 'TIME,' 'WWD,' 'Self' and Observer.'
