OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, has placed Utah on a shortlist of states under consideration for a new data center campus. The facility would be crucial in supporting OpenAI’s artificial intelligence operations, technology that requires an immense amount of power.
According to OpenAI, each data center campus would operate in the 1-gigawatt range, enough to power more than 2,600 Teslas or light 100 million LED bulbs.
Advancing AI Technology
Brandon Amacher, director of the Emerging Tech Policy Lab at Utah Valley University, said AI is advancing rapidly, and those who embrace it early will benefit. "You either get out in front of it, you adopt it, you start implementing it, or someone else will," Amacher said. AI is becoming an integral part of everyday life, he added.
Utah's Potential for Expansion
Utah is one of 16 states OpenAI is looking at for the expansion. OpenAI has started requesting proposals regarding land, power, engineers, and architects.
Representatives are currently traveling to visit potential sites. The company is expected to announce its final selections later this spring. "Certainly, it would lead to job creation. Utah has a big and burgeoning tech sector," Amacher said.
AI Development Priority
Utah Senate President Stuart Adams emphasized in his opening speech of the 2025 legislative session that AI development must be a priority. However, he acknowledged the massive energy demand data centers require.
"AI needs data centers. Data centers need what? They need power," Adams said. Utah hopes to triple its power generation by 2050, but even that may not be enough. "We stand at a pivotal moment in Utah's future. We need more energy," Adams said.
Environmental Concerns
In addition to power, cooling these massive data centers requires large amounts of water, sometimes hundreds of thousands of gallons per day.
"That is another concern. If you are in a state where sometimes you have water shortages, these data centers can require a lot of water to keep them operational," Amacher said.
