Microsoft Investing $3.3 Billion to Build Artificial Intelligence Data Center in Wisconsin

The Microsoft company logo is displayed at their offices in Sydney, Australia, on Feb. 3, 2021. Rick Rycroft/AP Photo

Microsoft is investing $3.3 billion to build a new artificial intelligence (AI) data center in the city of Racine, Wisconsin, according to the White House.

The tech giant plans to build the new AI center on the same land as the failed $10 billion investment from Taiwanese electronics manufacturer Foxconn six years prior, the Biden administration said in a statement.

According to the White House, the multi-billion dollar investment by the Bill Gates-founded company will create 2,300 union construction jobs and 2,000 permanent jobs, all of which will be well-paying and will include “growth pathways” and comprehensive benefits such as paid family leave.

Microsoft is also committed to providing “skilling opportunities for thousands more Wisconsinites in the digital economy,” and will pair its data center investment with a commitment to investing in innovation and workforce in Racine and statewide, the statement said.

As part of its investment, the tech giant will be partnering with Gateway Technical College in Racine to develop a “Datacenter Academy” where it plans to train 1,000 locals to serve in data center and Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) roles by 2030.

The company has also committed to employing up to 2,000 people in permanent roles at its Racine facility.

A motorist passes by a Foxconn office building in Taipei, Taiwan, on July 14, 2020. Ann Wang/Reuters

Biden Takes Aim at Trump

According to the White House, President Joe Biden is set to make an appearance in Racine on Wednesday to tout Microsoft’s multi-billion dollar investment in the city as well as his administration’s “Investing in America” agenda, which the White House said is “driving economic comebacks in communities across the country” and “unleashing hundreds of billions of dollars of private sector investment” in industries such as AI and green energy.

In a statement, before he arrived in Raccine, the White House also used the latest investment by Microsoft to criticize former President Donald Trump, who had praised the Foxconn deal during his time in office, saying it would become “one of the most advanced places of any kind you’ll see anywhere in the world.”

“Six years ago, the prior administration touted a $10 billion investment by Foxconn that would purportedly create 13,000 manufacturing jobs in Racine but after 100 homes and farms were bulldozed to make way for the manufacturing plant and over $500 million in taxpayer dollars were invested to prepare the site, no such investment materialized,” the White House said.

“Foxconn abandoned plans to manufacture LCD screens in the state and created only a fraction of the promised jobs,” the statement continued, adding that 1,000 manufacturing jobs left Racine, and 6,000 manufacturing jobs left Wisconsin in the years that followed.

The White House went on to note that nearly 4,000 jobs have been added in Racine—a third of them in manufacturing—and 177,000 jobs have been added in Wisconsin since President Biden took office.

“President Biden promised that, unlike his predecessor, he wouldn’t leave communities like Racine behind,” the White House said.

A spokesperson for President Trump did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.