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TL;DR
SpaceX says it plans to invest more than $74 billion in two AI supercomputing projects: more than $24 billion near Starbase, Texas, and about $50 billion in Cochise County, Arizona. Local decisions are scheduled for December 9, 2026, but key details—including the Texas facility’s power capacity and water use—remain unknown.
SpaceX says it plans to invest more than $74 billion in two AI supercomputing projects, one near its Starbase launch site in Texas and another in Cochise County, Arizona. The projects would pair a gas-fired power plant with computing infrastructure in Texas and draw electricity from the grid in Arizona; both still require local approvals.
The Texas project is planned for an approximately 444-acre site near the Port of Brownsville. SpaceX says its investment will exceed $24 billion, while a Starbase city notice puts the estimated capital investment for initial phases at about $24 billion and allows for future expansion. The city describes the development as a gas-fired power plant and supercomputing facility. SpaceX says the site will generate its own electricity rather than draw from the public grid, but the city notice does not state the plant’s capacity.
Local news outlet The 956 Report, citing an air registration filed with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, reported that an initial temporary setup would use 35 natural-gas turbines with about 748 megawatts of combined capacity. The report says those would later be replaced by eight larger turbines totaling about 708 megawatts. Those figures come from the outlet’s account of the filing, not the city notice. SpaceX says the Texas campus will train AI systems and help test technology for future space-based computing. It projects more than 500 permanent jobs once the site is operating.
In 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, built in four phases. It estimates power demand of about 1,500 megawatts in the first phase and approximately 6 gigawatts at full build-out, supported by a 24-gigawatt-hour battery system. The project is planned to receive power through local electric cooperatives and a utility-owned substation, rather than an on-site power plant.
SpaceX plans more than $74 billion for two AI campuses
The proposed supercomputing projects would bring major investment to Texas and Arizona. Both still need local approvals, and key power and water details remain open.
Two sites, different power plans
The proposals pair computing infrastructure with distinct electricity arrangements.
- Planned gas-fired power plant and supercomputing facility.
- SpaceX says the site will generate its own electricity.
- Plant capacity and campus water use are not stated in the city notice.
- Planned grid connection through electric cooperatives and a utility-owned substation.
- Application projects power demand rising to about 6 gigawatts at full build-out.
- SpaceX says it plans dry cooling and no industrial groundwater use.
Local decisions are next
Both proposals have scheduled proceedings, where officials and residents can examine the plans.
Cochise County’s Planning and Zoning Commission is scheduled to hear the application.
The City Commission is scheduled to consider a property tax abatement for the Texas project.
Both local proceedings are scheduled for this date.
What remains uncertain
The announced figures describe plans and estimates, not completed projects or confirmed outcomes.
Power and water details
The city notice does not specify generating capacity or campus water use.
Electricity arrangements
The projected demand depends on power delivery and required regulatory approvals.
Costs, jobs, and approvals
Final costs, schedules, employment outcomes, and project conditions are not established.
AI Power Demand Moves to Local Votes
The plans put the growing electricity needs of AI computing before two communities that will have to weigh economic investment against infrastructure and land-use impacts. The announced spending is large, but it is a planned investment, not money already spent or a guarantee that both campuses will be built as proposed.
In Texas, the project’s proposed self-generation separates it from Arizona’s planned grid connection, while leaving questions about the generating facility’s capacity and environmental effects. In Arizona, the application’s projected six-gigawatt demand makes the electricity supply arrangement a central issue. SpaceX says the campus will use dry cooling and not industrial groundwater, but the county filing estimates 7 to 10 acre-feet of water a year at full build-out, mostly for staff use. It compares that amount with water use by roughly 20 to 30 Arizona homes.
The local stakes also include jobs and public infrastructure. SpaceX says the Texas project has produced more than 3,000 construction jobs so far and expects over 500 permanent positions. Its Arizona application projects about 5,500 construction workers at peak and around 1,000 staff at full build-out. Those are company or application estimates, not confirmed employment totals.
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From Orbital Computing to Two Sites
SpaceX’s announcement follows its February 2 statement, after acquiring xAI, that electricity demand for AI could not be met by terrestrial facilities without hardship to communities and the environment. The company pointed then to data centers in orbit. Its November announcement instead advances two land-based sites, while presenting the Texas project as a way to develop and test technology for future space-based computing.
The two proposals have different approval records. The Arizona county application names Tombstone Resources L.L.C., not SpaceX; the connection is established by SpaceX’s project page and Tombstone Resources’ statement for a November 4 town hall. In Texas, a Starbase city notice identifies the planned facility and a related tax-abatement consideration. SpaceX also says it has committed $220 million to water and wastewater infrastructure for Brownsville and Cameron County, including $40 million it says it has already provided. The company says the projects would add about 20 million gallons per day from sources independent of the Rio Grande.
Reuters reported that SpaceX’s AI segment generated more than half of the company’s revenue in the third quarter. The figure places the campus plans within a business where AI has become a major revenue source, but it does not establish how much of that revenue will fund either project.
“Together, they represent more than $74 billion in planned American investment.”
— SpaceX
Costs, Power and Approvals Still Open
The announced totals are plans, and the projects’ final costs, schedules and completed capacity have not been established. The Texas city notice gives an approximate investment for initial phases but does not specify the facility’s computing capacity, the power plant’s capacity or how much water the campus itself will use. SpaceX has not stated the size of the tax break under consideration in Starbase.
In Arizona, the county application describes a project submitted by Tombstone Resources, while SpaceX claims the investment and project publicly. The application’s projected power needs depend on electricity being delivered through the cooperatives and a utility-owned substation. Whether the related electricity arrangements receive all required regulatory approvals, including approval from the state utility regulator, remains unclear. SpaceX’s promised reduction in local cooperative members’ power bills is also not established as an outcome.
The project estimates for jobs, water, electricity and construction describe plans or projections; they are not independently confirmed operating results. Local approval is still pending, and it is not yet clear whether either project will change before those decisions.
December 9 Hearings Set the Next Test
Both projects face scheduled local proceedings on December 9, 2026. The Cochise County Planning and Zoning Commission is due to hold a hearing on the Arizona application. In Starbase, the City Commission is scheduled to consider a property tax abatement for the Texas project.
Those proceedings will provide an opportunity for officials and residents to examine the proposals and the conditions attached to them. The next material updates will include any local decisions, changes to the project applications, and further information about the Texas facility’s power and water requirements and Arizona’s electricity arrangements. The stated investment figures should be treated as plans unless and until the projects win approvals and proceed.
Key Questions
How much does SpaceX plan to spend on the AI campuses?
SpaceX says the two projects represent more than $74 billion in planned investment: more than $24 billion in Texas and roughly $50 billion in Arizona. These are announced plans, not confirmed final costs or completed spending.
Where will the two projects be built?
The Texas project is planned for an approximately 444-acre site near the Port of Brownsville, in the Starbase area. The Arizona proposal covers about 747 acres near Cochise in Cochise County.
How will the campuses get electricity?
SpaceX says the Texas facility will generate its own electricity using a gas-fired power plant. The Arizona campus is planned to receive power through local electric cooperatives and a utility-owned substation, with projected demand reaching about six gigawatts at full build-out.
Have the projects been approved?
No final local approvals are described in the source material. A Cochise County Planning and Zoning Commission hearing and a Starbase City Commission consideration of a property tax abatement are scheduled for December 9, 2026.
What important details are still unknown?
The Texas project’s computing capacity and water use, as well as the size of its proposed tax break, have not been specified in the cited notices. Arizona’s final electricity arrangements and the regulatory status of the promised bill reductions also remain unresolved.
Source: ThorstenMeyerAI.com
