Oracle and OpenAI Scrap Texas AI Project
Oracle and OpenAI have canceled plans for a massive AI data center expansion in Texas. The decision was reportedly due to shifts in financing and strategic needs. The move represents a significant change of plans for a major infrastructure project designed to support the growing demands of AI development.
The now-canceled project was a 600-megawatt expansion of an already massive AI data center campus in Abilene, Texas. This facility is the flagship of a broader initiative known as "Stargate," a $500 billion joint venture between Oracle, OpenAI, and SoftBank to build AI infrastructure across the United States. Initial plans announced in September 2025 projected that the new Stargate sites, including the Abilene expansion, would create over 25,000 onsite jobs in the U.S. The existing Abilene campus and the planned expansion were expected to support nearly 1,700 of those jobs directly. The decision to halt the expansion stemmed from prolonged negotiations over financing and what sources describe as OpenAI's frequently changing demand forecasts. Despite the cancellation, Oracle has stated that OpenAI's necessary computing capacity will be provided through other data centers currently under development. The collapsed deal has created an opening for Meta Platforms, which is now reportedly in talks to lease the expansion site from the developer, Crusoe. Chipmaker Nvidia, a key supplier for the site, has reportedly facilitated these discussions to ensure its hardware is used, even paying a $150 million deposit to Crusoe.
