AWS plans to strengthen its commitment to Ohio with a $10 billion investment supporting the surging demand for cloud computing and AI.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) announced a $10 billion investment in cloud and AI infrastructure in Ohio which adds to the portfolio of earlier fund injections in the state.
Previously, the cloud subdivision of Amazon revealed a $7.8 billion investment towards the same purpose in 2023 and more than $6 billion total investment made throughout 2022.
The firm not only invests in the existing infrastructure but also aims to expand its infrastructure to new sites across Ohio by the end of 2030. By this time, AWS’s investment toward data centre expansion in Ohio is forecasted to surpass $23 billion.
Fresh investment is expected to generate hundreds of new AWS jobs in technical fields such as data centre engineering, network specialization, engineering operations management, and security. Additionally, it will contribute to supporting thousands of local jobs each year across various industries like telecommunications, facility maintenance, and power generation within the AWS supply chain.
The growing demand for cloud and AI infrastructure is driven by the rapid development of generative AI (GenAI) tools and services across industries. Amazon itself has recently revealed the full scope of upcoming generative AI innovations at the annual cloud-focused event in Las Vegas.
AWS data centres are multi-purpose, designed to efficiently handle both traditional workloads and AI/ML models. By deploying advanced AI infrastructure, Ohio will further establish itself as a centre for innovation and “the tech hub of the Midwest”.
Since 2010, Amazon’s investment in Ohio surpassed $35 billion, contributing $31 billion to the state’s GDP. The development of the firm’s data centres has created 38,000 full- and part-time jobs and supported an additional 72,000 indirect jobs.
AWS not only provides new job opportunities to existing local talent but also boosts the growth of tech professionals in the region. The company is committed to education and workforce development through initiatives like the Data Center Technician Training Program at Columbus State Community College, a $50,000 scholarship fund, and paid internships for students. AWS also offers the ‘Grow Our Own Talent’ program to upskill employees and work-based learning opportunities to help external candidates secure internships and entry-level data centre roles.
As AWS grows in Ohio, it remains committed to sustainability, achieving 100% renewable energy for its global operations in 2023. In Ohio, the firm made investments in 23 wind and solar projects which will generate over 2.9 gigawatt-hours of clean energy annually, enough to power 565,000 U.S. homes.
