Texas overtook Northern Virginia as the world's top primary data center market in May 2026, driven by an expanding power grid, available land along transmission corridors, and a state policy environment that has remained supportive of large-scale AI infrastructure. Data Center Knowledge's June 2026 roundup of new developments captures the breadth of activity reshaping the North American market across construction, regulation, and capacity planning.
CloudBurst Data Centers' 1.2 GW flagship campus in the San Marcos and New Braunfels area of Central Texas, backed by a long-term natural gas supply agreement with Energy Transfer's Oasis Pipeline providing up to 450,000 MMBtu per day, represents the type of behind-the-meter, AI-ready infrastructure now defining the Texas competitive advantage. Nvidia has separately partnered with IREN to deploy up to 5 GW of AI infrastructure globally, with Texas's Sweetwater site positioned as a flagship location for Nvidia's DSX AI factory architecture. Applied Digital Corporation also filed plans for a $3.6 billion, 300-acre AI campus called Delta Forge 1 in Louisiana.
Regulatory shifts are accelerating in states outside Texas. Virginia's Department of Environmental Quality revised permitting guidance for hyperscale backup generators, challenging the longstanding assumption that generators are rarely used and reflecting growing community pressure over emissions as AI-driven load growth strains the grid. North Carolina's House advanced a bill designed to prevent utilities and ratepayers from absorbing financial risk if projected data center demand fails to materialize. ERCOT has also cautioned that projected power demand in Texas may not fully materialize as initially forecast, signaling that even the most AI-friendly grid environment requires careful capacity planning.
Prime Data Centers broke ground on SMF02, the second data center on its Sacramento campus, delivering 18 MW of critical IT load capacity at 150,000 square feet. Globally, SoftBank announced plans to invest up to 75 billion euros to develop 5 GW of data center capacity across France, starting with three sites targeting 3.1 GW by 2031.
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