A new era of industrial power is unfolding across North Texas — and it’s not oil, energy or aviation leading the charge. It’s AI.
Lambda Inc., a cloud computing firm backed by tech giant Nvidia, plans to move into a $700 million data center now under construction in Plano. The company will be the lead tenant in the 425,000-square-foot facility being built at 601 N. Star Road by Plano-based Aligned Data Centers.
Why Plano, Why Now
For a region long known for its corporate campuses and telecom roots, the project marks something new — and potentially transformative. In a statement, Aligned CEO Andrew Schaap, said the demand for AI computation space is driving increased interest in the North Texas market.
“We’re proud to partner with Lambda to support the buildout of its GPU cloud infrastructure, accelerated by NVIDIA, for AI deployments, which is transforming how AI developers innovate and businesses utilizing AI models operate,” Schaap said. “Particularly in Dallas, where demand for AI computation space has spiked interest in a growing market, combining a GPU cloud built specifically for AI workloads with an AI-ready data center designed with liquid cooling technologies capable of supporting the highest-density environments will be a game changer.”
Lambda provides specialized hardware and services tailored to artificial intelligence development, including the latest processors from Nvidia. Earlier this year, the company closed a $480 million funding round, with Nvidia playing a lead role.
The region also offers more than land and low taxes. It provides energy — and lots of it. CBS News reports, while Taiwan, where many chips are currently made, faces high energy costs, Texas has an abundant supply of affordable natural gas. Some analysts also believe the domestic build-out could help Nvidia and its partners sidestep tariffs on Taiwanese-made products.
Nvidia’s Vision: Build AI in America
What makes this move more than just a real estate deal is the broader strategy behind it. Nvidia is on a mission to manufacture AI supercomputers entirely on American soil, especially in Texas. That means building not just the chips, but also the systems, software and testing capabilities to power everything from large language models to autonomous vehicles and next-generation robotics.
“The engines of the world’s AI infrastructure are being built in the United States for the first time,” said Jensen Huang, founder and CEO of NVIDIA in an official statement. “Adding American manufacturing helps us better meet the incredible and growing demand for AI chips and supercomputers, strengthens our supply chain and boosts our resiliency.”
Behind the scenes, Nvidia will deploy its own AI-powered technology to operate the new facility. Using its Omniverse platform, the company can create virtual replicas of the factory floor. Autonomous robots built on Nvidia’s Isaac platform will handle much of the manufacturing, testing, and system integration.
These are not just tech tools, they’re the building blocks of what many are calling a new industrial revolution.
North Texas Is Attracting More AI Infrastructure
Plano’s data center is part of a much larger movement across North Texas. In nearby Sherman, Texas Instruments is spending $30 billion to build four advanced chip plants. Taiwanese company GlobalWafers is constructing a $5 billion silicon wafer factory there, aiming to produce more than two million wafers per month.
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