SoftBank CEO Son unveils $500 bil AI data center investment in Ohio

SoftBank Group Corp, led by Chairman and CEO Masayoshi Son, has unveiled plans for a monumental $500 billion investment to construct an artificial intelligence data center in Piketon, Ohio. Construction is slated to commence this year, marking what Son described as one of the largest single-location investments globally. The announcement was made after Son attended a White House dinner hosted by U.S. President Donald Trump for visiting Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, and a groundbreaking ceremony for a 9.2-gigawatt gas-fired power plant in Piketon. U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick underscored the project's scale, referring to it as the "largest construction project" in the country. The proposed data center will be co-located with the new power plant, designed to supply the immense electricity demands of AI systems. The $500 billion figure encompasses not only the data center infrastructure but also investments in AI-related semiconductors. SoftBank also confirmed the establishment of the Portsmouth Consortium, a collaboration involving 21 Japanese and U.S. companies, including three Japanese megabanks and Goldman Sachs, to facilitate this extensive power generation and AI infrastructure development.