President Donald Trump’s Project Stargate, an at least $500 billion investment to build the physical and virtual infrastructure to power AI construction, is considering investment overseas, according to reporting by the Financial Times.
The project, which Trump announced in January alongside three partners, Oracle’s Chief Technology Officer Larry Ellison, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son, is considering expanding internationally, with its top country of choice being the UK. According to the Times, Germany and France are also attractive candidates.
When announced, Stargate was touted as a project designed to boost the AI industry in the United States. The Times reports that the project’s focus remains on improving U.S. AI infrastructure, but future investment in the UK is being considered as part of international expansion should the project prove successful.
THE LARGER TREND
Trump announced Project Stargate at a press conference in January. The project is an at least $500 billion investment to build the physical and virtual infrastructure to power AI construction, including “colossal data centers” and campuses in America.
Ellison said the data centers are under construction, with the first location being in Abilene, Texas. Ten buildings were being built, each with an area of half a million square feet. Oracle’s CTO said the number will expand to 20 buildings and extend beyond Abilene.
At the time of the announcement, Trump, Altman, Ellison and Son said one of Stargate’s goals was to improve health outcomes and cure diseases, according to Altman, at an unprecedented rate.
Ellison said that a cancer vaccine is one of the “most exciting” things the group is working on using the tools provided by Altman and Son.
At the time, Trump said the project would almost immediately create more than 100,000 American jobs and ensure AI infrastructure in the U.S. by competing against China and others in the space who are moving forward rapidly with their technologies.
Still, experts say Trump’s tariffs could stifle data center development, as construction is heavily dependent on materials such as steel and aluminum, which, in addition to steel and aluminum derivative articles, are subject to a 25% tariff. There is also concern that tariffs will affect supply chains that support the semiconductor industry.
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