Amazon Project Star: $11B Indiana Hyperscale AI Campus

Status: Under Construction / Rapid Structural Build (May 2026)   |   Location: New Carlisle, Indiana


Project Overview

As of May 8, 2026, Amazon Web Services has significantly expanded construction activity on its “Project Star” data center campus in Indiana, reportedly doubling the size of its structural workforce as development accelerates. The project, valued at approximately $11 billion, represents the largest private investment in Indiana’s history and highlights AWS’s growing focus on advanced artificial intelligence and low-latency cloud infrastructure across the Midwest. Strategically positioned to serve major enterprise markets such as Chicago and Detroit, the campus is engineered as a “Low-Latency Anchor,” designed to reduce data transmission delays for financial services, manufacturing, logistics, and AI-intensive workloads operating across the region. Unlike traditional cloud campuses optimized solely for general compute demand, Project Star is being specifically configured for AWS’s custom AI accelerators, including Trainium and Inferentia chips, which support large-scale machine learning training and inference operations. The facility also incorporates a sophisticated air-to-liquid hybrid cooling architecture that leverages Indiana’s cooler seasonal temperatures to reduce mechanical cooling requirements and improve efficiency. Through this design, AWS aims to maintain an exceptionally low Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) rating of approximately 1.15, placing the campus among the more energy-efficient hyperscale deployments in North America. To support long-term sustainability goals, AWS has also committed to a large-scale regional solar energy procurement initiative intended to achieve full renewable energy matching by the time the first operational data hall becomes active.


Quick Facts

FieldValue
Project NameAmazon Project Star: $11B Indiana Hyperscale AI Campus
LocationNew Carlisle, Indiana
StatusUnder Construction / Rapid Structural Build (May 2026)
CommissioningPhase 1 Operations: Late 2026
Total IT Load1,000.0 MW (1.0 GW Capacity)
Total CapacityMulti-building campus (15+ Data Halls)
Tier LevelTier III+ (AWS Global Hyperscale Standard)
Project TypeAWS Cloud & AI Inference Region

City Profile

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City NameIndiana
Population~6.83 million
Urban AgglomerationMajor metros: Indianapolis ~2.1M, Chicago metro (IN portion included)
City GDP~$450 billion (state GDP)
Per Capita Income~$58,000
City TierTier 1 (Developed U.S. state with strong industrial base)
Key StrengthsManufacturing hub (automotive, steel), logistics & transportation, growing data center market, central U.S. location, strong infrastructure, affordable power

Companies Involved

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Developer / Operator Amazon Web Services
Strategic Infrastructure Partner Indiana Michigan Power (AEP).
Construction Contractor Graycor Construction / Local Unions.
MEP Engineering Hybrid Air-Liquid Economization; 800V DC Rack Power.
Network Connectivity High-density fiber mesh to AWS East/West regions.
Power Infrastructure 1,000 MW Utility Allocation.

Technical Specifications

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Power Capacity1,000.0 MW (1.0 GW)
UPS RedundancyAWS V2 Distributed Battery Backup.
Cooling System Direct-Evaporative & Closed-Loop Hybrid.
Connectivity Direct low-latency on-ramps for Midwest enterprise.
PUE Target < 1.15
Energy Mix 100% Renewable Matching (Solar/Wind).

Milestones

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Announcement 2024
Construction Start 2025
Phase 1 Go-Live May 2026
Full Buildout Late 2026

Investment Details

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Total InvestmentUS$11.0 Billion
Funding Amazon Corporate CapEx.

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