Data centers in Wisconsin are rapidly expanding the state's market with major clusters around Milwaukee and Madison. Several upcoming data centers, like Microsoft Fairwater AI data center, and the Stargate Data center in the Midwest, are set to further expand the state's data center market. In this blog, we have covered the list of upcoming data centers in Wisconsin in 2026.

List of Upcoming Data Centers in Wisconsin 2026

Microsoft – Mount Pleasant (Fairwater 1 & 2)

On 18th September 2025, Microsoft announced its plans to build a second AI data center in Wisconsin. This USD 4 billion project will join the USD 3.3 billion data center in Mount Pleasant in the southeast of Wisconsin, which was announced in 2024.

The Mount Pleasant data center, also known as Fairwater AI data center, is built in multiple phases. The first phase is backed by USD 3.3 billion investment, which is expected to be operational by early 2026. Microsoft is committed to another USD 4 billion over the next three years for the second phase, bringing the total project cost to USD 7 billion. 

The Fairwater AI data center in Wisconsin covers 315 acres and houses three massive buildings with a committed 1.2 million square feet under roofs. The construction required 46.6 miles of deep foundation piles, 26.5 million pounds of structural steel, 120 miles of medium-voltage underground cable, and 72.6 miles of mechanical piping. 

It is being built with thousands of NVIDIA GPUs, and 90% of the facility will rely on a state-of-the-art closed-loop liquid cooling system. The remaining portion of the facility will use outside air for cooling and switch to water only in extreme weather conditions. This data center is optimized to run for many small independent workloads, such as hosting websites, email, or business applications, making it one massive AI supercomputer. 

Stargate Data Center Site in Wisconsin

In October 2025, OpenAI, Oracle, and Vantage Data Centers announced plans to develop a data center campus outside Milwaukee in Port Washington, Wisconsin. This data center campus is named “ Lighthouse” and will be a part of OpenAI and Oracle’s 4.5 GW additional Stargate capacity. 

The Lighthouse campus will feature 4 cutting-edge data centers providing 1 GW capacity. The construction is expected to begin soon, with completion scheduled in 2028. The campus will feature a closed-loop liquid cooling system and will be powered by solar, wind, and a battery energy storage system (BESS). 

The data center campus will be built by Vantage with an investment of up to USD 15 billion on 500 of 672 acres, preserving the natural environment, and is currently pursuing LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification for the campus.

Meta’s Beaver Dam Data Center

Meta’s Beaver Dam Data Center is the company’s first data center in Wisconsin and its 30th data center globally. The Beaver Dam Data Center is being built in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin, located in Dodge County, with an investment of USD 1 billion, and is currently under construction. The project broke ground on 12th November 2025. The facility will cover about 700,000 square feet when completed and is expected to go online by 2027. 

In February 2025, Meta announced filing for land acquisition with funding of USD 567 million through Degas LLC. Beaver Dam Data Center will be powered by renewable energy.

QTS Data Center Campus in Dane County (DeForest/Vienna)

On 30 October 2025, QTS Data Centers announced plans to develop a state-of-the-art hyperscale data center campus in Dane County. This data center development is backed by a USD 12 billion investment, and the company also promised USD 50 million community commitment for DeForest and Vienna, making it one of the largest proposed data center investments in Wisconsin.

QTS stated that it would submit a zoning application to the DeForest Village Board in November, though no further updates have been released since.

To support the campus’s power requirements, QTS and Alliant Energy are working on a renewable-energy agreement. Under this agreement, it will help enable new clean-energy resources for the project, facilitated through the sale of Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) generated from approximately 750 megawatts of renewable energy.

Red Cedar / Menomonie Data Center

Red Cedar data center proposed plan*

The Red Cedar data center is a USD 1.6 billion project proposed by Balloonist LLC in July 2025. Balloonist LLC was established in January 2024 and is a SPV (Special Purpose Vehicle) company established for the data center, with no details publicly disclosed about the parent company. 

The proposed plan states that the campus will feature up to 15 buildings/equipment yards, with the number of data centers planned yet to be disclosed. The data center could use approximately 75,000 gallons of water per day once fully completed. 

As of September 2025, the Menomonie City Council has approved only the land rezoning required for the project. The official project proposal is still pending review and approval, meaning construction and final scope are yet to be confirmed.

Conclusion

As data center construction accelerates across southeastern Wisconsin, it is helping position the state as a major AI infrastructure hub in North America. Through upcoming projects like Microsoft's Mount Pleasant, Vantage's Stargate Data Center, and Meta's Beaver Dam data center, major investments are expected in Racine County and Kenosha County. 

As more and more data centers emerge with support of the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation, the state continues to emerge as an important digital infrastructure beyond the traditional markets like New York or Kansas City. 

Spot High-Value Data Center Projects & Capitalize on Emerging Opportunities

Unlock United States Data Center Opportunities! Introducing Blackridge Research's Global Project Tracking (GPT) platform:

• Instant access to the latest Data Center Facility Projects in the United States

• Comprehensive insights from planning to completion

• Essential details: scope, CapEx, timelines, and key contacts

• User-friendly interface for quick opportunity identification

Want more data center construction insights, including planned projects, active companies, and key decision-makers? Get started with our project tracker demo today.

Why Blackridge’s Global Projects Tracker? 

Blackridge’s Global Projects Tracker covers projects from 150 countries and is updated with real-time, accurate, and authentic project developments. By subscribing to our United States Data Center projects database, you can get access to key contact details of ongoing and upcoming projects, project timelines and overviews, and regular alerts on project developments, all served to you through an easy-to-use interface.