🔍 Read the full analysis: SpaceX Plans AI Campuses With More Than $74 Billion In Spending on ThorstenMeyerAI.com
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TL;DR
SpaceX says it is planning two AI computing campuses, one near Starbase, Texas, and another in Cochise County, Arizona, with combined planned investment above $74 billion. Local decisions are scheduled for Dec. 9, but key details—including Texas facility capacity and the Arizona power arrangement—remain unresolved.
SpaceX said Nov. 12 it is advancing two large AI computing projects, one in Starbase, Texas, and one in Cochise County, Arizona, with more than $74 billion in planned investment combined. Both proposals still face local proceedings scheduled for Dec. 9, and details including the Texas campus’s computing capacity and the Arizona project’s power arrangements remain unsettled.
SpaceX puts the planned Texas investment at more than $24 billion. A Starbase City notice describes an estimated $24 billion in capital investment for the initial phases, with possible later expansion. The proposed site covers about 444 acres near the Port of Brownsville. SpaceX says the facility would generate its own electricity rather than draw from the public grid; the city notice describes a gas-fired power plant but does not state its generating capacity.
For Arizona, SpaceX describes a roughly $50 billion campus on about 747 acres near Cochise. The county application, filed by Tombstone Resources L.L.C., proposes up to nine computing buildings, each about 493,000 square feet, developed in four phases. It estimates power demand of about 1,500 megawatts in the first phase and approximately 6,000 megawatts at full build-out, supported by a 24-gigawatt-hour battery system. The county documents reviewed in the source material do not name SpaceX; the company’s project page and Tombstone’s town-hall statement link SpaceX to the proposal.
The two plans take different approaches to electricity and cooling. SpaceX says Texas would have on-site generation, while the Arizona application describes power delivered through local cooperatives to a utility-owned substation and dry cooling without cooling towers. The Arizona filing estimates water use at about 7 to 10 acre-feet annually at full build-out, mostly for staff. SpaceX has not disclosed the Texas computing facility’s water use. The company says the Arizona campus could employ about 5,500 construction workers at peak and around 1,000 staff at full operation; it cites more than 3,000 construction jobs and over 500 permanent jobs for Texas.
SpaceX Plans Two AI Campuses With More Than $74 Billion in Spending
SpaceX proposes large computing campuses in Texas and Arizona. Both face local proceedings on Dec. 9, 2026, while key infrastructure details remain unresolved.
Two sites, different power plans
The proposed campuses raise distinct questions for local infrastructure and utilities.
- On-site electricity generation; city notice describes a gas-fired plant.
- Computing capacity and facility water use have not been disclosed.
- SpaceX cites more than 3,000 construction jobs and over 500 permanent jobs.
- Application describes utility connections and dry cooling without cooling towers.
- Power demand is estimated at 1,500 megawatts in the first phase and 6,000 megawatts at full build-out.
- SpaceX cites about 5,500 peak construction workers and around 1,000 staff at full operation.
Arizona proposal at a glance
The county application outlines a phased campus and estimates its resource needs.
About 747 acres
The proposed campus is near Cochise, Arizona.
Up to nine
Each computing building is proposed at about 493,000 square feet.
About 7–10 acre-feet yearly
The application estimates this at full build-out, mostly for staff.
What local review covers
The scheduled proceedings are steps in review; they do not establish that every approval is secured.
Cochise County’s Planning and Zoning Commission is scheduled to hear the proposal on Dec. 9, 2026.
Starbase City Commission is scheduled to consider a related property-tax abatement on Dec. 9, 2026.
Project scale, timing, permits, utility arrangements, and operating details remain subject to review and development.
What remains unsettled
The proposals describe plans and estimates, not completed projects or guaranteed outcomes.
| Open question | What the material says |
|---|---|
| Texas capacity and water | Neither is stated for the computing facility. |
| Arizona power arrangements | The application describes a connection plan, but approvals and electricity arrangements remain unresolved. |
| Construction and jobs | Company figures are plans or estimates; construction and full staffing are not confirmed. |
| Public benefits | SpaceX names intended AI uses, but the announcement does not establish resulting products or benefits. |
Two Campuses, Different Power Demands
The announcement would place large new computing developments in two communities with distinct infrastructure questions. The Texas proposal pairs AI computing with a gas-fired power plant, making local review of the facility and its emissions relevant alongside its investment and jobs. The Arizona plan would rely on grid connections and a very large stated power requirement, bringing questions about utility capacity, the energy supply and costs for existing customers into focus.
SpaceX says the projects would support training frontier AI systems for applications including medical research, emergency response, manufacturing and national security. Those are the company’s stated purposes; the announcement does not establish what products or public benefits will result. The scale of the proposed spending also signals the resources SpaceX intends to devote to AI computing, but the figures are planned investment, not completed spending.
Local infrastructure is part of the case SpaceX is making. The company says it has committed $220 million for water and wastewater improvements in Brownsville and Cameron County, including $40 million it says has already provided. It says the projects could add about 20 million gallons a day from sources independent of the Rio Grande. Those regional improvements are separate from the still-undisclosed amount of water the Texas computing facility itself would use.
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From Orbital Computing to Ground Sites
The announcement follows SpaceX’s Feb. 2 announcement that it had acquired xAI. At that time, the company argued that terrestrial electricity supply could not meet global AI demand in the near term without harming communities and the environment, and pointed to data centers in orbit. SpaceX now describes the Texas facility as a ground-based project that would also help develop and test technology for future space-based computing.
The proposals are at different stages of public review. In Arizona, the county application is identified as SU26-22 and was filed by Tombstone Resources. In Texas, the Starbase notice describes the proposed campus and a related tax-abatement matter. These documents provide details beyond SpaceX’s investment announcement, but they do not settle whether either project will receive all approvals or proceed on the stated scale.
The source material cites Reuters as reporting that SpaceX’s AI segment generated more than half of the company’s revenue in the third quarter of 2026. That figure is attributed to Reuters and concerns the company’s reported segment revenue; it does not describe the projected revenues or returns of either campus.
“Together, they represent more than $74 billion in planned American investment.”
— SpaceX
Capacity, Water and Utility Questions
Several material details remain open. SpaceX and the Starbase notice do not state the Texas computing facility’s capacity or its own water demand, and the size of any proposed Texas property-tax abatement is not specified in the source material. A local outlet, The 956 Report, has reported details from an air registration SpaceX filed with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, including temporary and later turbine configurations. Those reported figures are not provided in the city notice or SpaceX’s announcement.
For Arizona, the proposed campus’s full 6-gigawatt power demand and connection plan are described in the application, but it remains unclear whether all required approvals and electricity arrangements will be secured. SpaceX promises lower power bills for members of the local cooperative; whether the relevant utility regulator approves the arrangement behind those savings is unresolved. The county application estimates low water use with dry cooling, but estimates can change as a project is designed and reviewed.
Neither announcement confirms that construction will proceed, that every phase will be built, or that the projects will employ the full numbers SpaceX cites. The investment and job figures are company plans or estimates, not completed outcomes.
Dec. 9 Hearings Set for Both Sites
The next scheduled local proceedings are both on Dec. 9, 2026. The Cochise County Planning and Zoning Commission is due to hold a hearing on the Arizona proposal. In Texas, the Starbase City Commission is scheduled to consider a property-tax abatement related to the project. The hearing and consideration are steps in local review; the supplied information does not say they will constitute final approval of every permit or project element.
After those proceedings, readers will be looking for decisions on the county application, the Texas tax matter, electricity arrangements and any further technical or environmental filings. SpaceX has not provided a complete construction schedule for either campus in the material available. The projects’ final scale, timing and operating details will depend on approvals and subsequent development.
Key Questions
How much does SpaceX plan to invest?
SpaceX says the two projects together represent more than $74 billion in planned investment: more than $24 billion for the Texas project and roughly $50 billion for Arizona. These are announced plans, not confirmed completed spending.
Where are the proposed AI campuses?
The Texas project is proposed on about 444 acres near the Port of Brownsville, within Starbase. The Arizona proposal covers about 747 acres near Cochise in Cochise County.
How will the campuses get power?
SpaceX says the Texas facility would generate its own electricity with a gas-fired plant. The Arizona application describes grid power delivered through local cooperatives, with demand estimated at about 1,500 megawatts in the first phase and approximately 6,000 megawatts at full build-out.
What remains unknown about the projects?
The Texas facility’s computing capacity and water use, and the size of its proposed tax abatement, are not specified. Arizona’s utility approvals and the arrangement behind promised lower cooperative-member bills remain unresolved; neither project’s final size or construction schedule is confirmed.
When are the next public proceedings?
The Cochise County Planning and Zoning Commission is scheduled to hear the Arizona proposal on Dec. 9, 2026. The Starbase City Commission is scheduled to consider a property-tax abatement on the same day.
Source: ThorstenMeyerAI.com
