Microsoft will invest $3.3 billion in a Wisconsin AI datacenter, and President Biden is on-site to announce the news and take a shot at President Trump’s Foxconn failures
The datacenter will be on the same site as the since-abandoned Foxconn facility in Racine County, Wisconsin.
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What you need to know
Microsoft will invest $3.3 billion in a project to build an AI datacenter in Racine County, Wisconsin. President Joseph Biden will travel to Wisconsin to announce the news, according to Biden officials. The major investment from Microsoft will help shift the AI landscape, which becomes increasingly more complex and competitive by the day.
The announcement comes at a time when tech giants are racing to lead the AI industry. Microsoft hasinvested billions into OpenAIand other AI projects. Recent reports state Microsoft and OpenAI plan to invest up to$100 billion in datacentersto shift away from reliance on NVIDIA. EvenCoca-Cola has invested over $1 billion into AIthrough a partnership with Microsoft.
AI already powers personal computing, enterprise workloads, and the cloud. The demand for artificial intelligence seems guaranteed to go up rapidly. Microsoft wants to shift away from reliance on other companies, such as NVIDIA, to meet AI demand. The $3.3 billion investment in the Racine County project is one of many steps in that direction.
Microsoft will also create a Datacenter academy in Wisconsin to train 1,000 people in STEM jobs. That academy will employ up to 2,000 people as well.
Not just about AI
While this is major news in the world of AI, there is also a political element to this announcement. The location of the upcoming datacenter is the same location as the Foxconn facility former President Donald Trump called the “eighth wonder of the world.” That facility was scaled back significantly.
Originally, the Foxconn facility was supposed to create 13,000 jobs and see up to a $10 billion investment by 2032. After being scaled back, only 1,454 jobs were created and the planned investment was reduced to $672 million by 2026, asreported by Axios.
The investment by Microsoft announced by Biden officials will create 2,300 union construction jobs and then 2,000 permanent jobs in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin if all goes to plan. Of course, plans can always change, as we’ve already seen on the site with the Foxconn facility.
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TheWhite House press releaseon the announcement wastes no time in mentioning the “prior administration,” connecting President Trump to the Foxconn facility.
“Today, President Biden will travel to Racine, Wisconsin – the same location as the failed Foxconn investment that the prior administration visited six years ago – to showcase a community at the heart of his commitment to invest in places that have been historically overlooked or failed by the last administration’s policies,” says the statement.
“President Biden will announce a $3.3 billion investment by Microsoft to build a new artificial intelligence (AI) datacenter in Racine, creating 2,300 union construction jobs and 2,000 permanent jobs over time.”
The release also highlights the fact that Foxconn is a “Taiwanese electronics manufacturer.” Microsoft, in contrast, is a US company.
The release contrasts the current administration with the previous one several times, at one point stating, “President Biden promised that unlike his predecessor, he wouldn’t leave communities like Racine behind.”
As AI demand increases across several sectors, Microsoft and other tech giants will continue to invest heavily into datacenters and related technologies. Those investments are also likely intertwine with politics.
Sean Endicott is a tech journalist at Windows Central, specializing in Windows, Microsoft software, AI, and PCs. He’s covered major launches, from Windows 10 and 11 to the rise of AI tools like ChatGPT. Sean’s journey began with the Lumia 740, leading to strong ties with app developers. Outside writing, he coaches American football, utilizing Microsoft services to manage his team. He studied broadcast journalism at Nottingham Trent University and is active on X @SeanEndicott_ and Threads @sean_endicott_.
