TheJobWalk E.86

OpenAI struck a 25-year power deal with Georgia Power for Project Camellia, and the Kansas City Chiefs unveiled renderings for their new $3 billion stadium. Electra committed $850 million to a new Ohio production facility, while Google was confirmed as operator of the new Columbia County Data Center near Augusta. Indiana Michigan Power sought approval for a 1,520 MW gas plant at Rockport, Meta and BlackRock formed a $14 billion JV for a data center in El Paso, and Bridgit launched the first agentic AI for construction workforce planning. Let's dive in!

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OpenAI has struck a 25-year power agreement with Georgia Power to supply 3.2 GW of contracted capacity for a new data center campus in Effingham County, Georgia, known as Project Camellia. Power will be delivered in phases between 2028 and 2032.

The site sits within the Savannah Gateway Industrial Hub, a 2,600-acre industrial zone.

The campus itself will span roughly 1,400 acres and comprise four buildings. OpenAI expects to invest $20 billion, with Bloomberg reporting the project could exceed $30 billion at full build-out.

OpenAI will pay the full infrastructure and electric service costs for the project and has committed to up to 1 GW of flexible demand response, reducing load during periods of peak grid demand. The facility will use a closed-loop cooling system.

Beyond infrastructure, OpenAI is establishing an $80 million community fund and up to $71 million in Codex credits for Georgia college, community college, and technical school students.

The project is currently in the announced stage.


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The Kansas City Chiefs unveiled initial concept renderings on July 22 for their new enclosed stadium, set to open in Kansas City, Kansas, in 2031.

The $3 billion stadium will feature a fully enclosed roof with translucent ETFE panels and a total capacity of approximately 70,000 fans. The site will include more than 20,000 parking spots.

The Chiefs named Kansas City based firm MANICA as lead design architect, with fellow Kansas City firm HNTB serving as architect of record. The selection followed a six month lead design competition between two finalists, with CAA ICON serving as owner's representative on the project.

The stadium project, along with a practice facility in Olathe and two private ancillary mixed use development districts, is expected to generate 36,500 full time equivalent job years and $8.2 billion in economic impact during construction.

Once operational, it is projected to support 8,500 full time equivalent jobs and generate $1.5 billion annually.

The project will be financed through a public-private partnership using STAR bonds and the Attracting Professional Sports to Kansas Fund, with no new state taxes required.

Electra will invest $850 million to build its first EL9 Ultra Short production facility in Springfield, Ohio, creating nearly 2,000 jobs. The 96-acre facility, located at AirPark Ohio, will initially produce up to 400 aircraft per year before scaling to 800. Construction on the site begins next year, paving the way for the nine-passenger hybrid-electric aircraft, designed for short takeoffs and point-to-point travel, following a year-long national search that evaluated more than 140 potential sites.

Google has been confirmed as the sole end-user and operator of the new Columbia County Data Center, a 1,900-acre, 23-building complex totaling 8 million square feet northwest of Augusta, Georgia. Announced July 23 by county leaders alongside President Trump's Ratepayer Protection Pledge, the project includes Google's commitment to cover all energy costs. New development covenants add decibel limits, lighting standards, and water supply protections following community pushback over prior data center proposals.

Indiana Michigan Power has requested state approval to build a 1,520 MW natural gas combined cycle facility at its Rockport, Indiana site, known as the Rockport Energy Center. The project will create roughly 1,200 construction jobs and 30 to 40 permanent roles, with construction starting in 2027 and operations beginning in summer 2030. I&M says the investment won't affect planned customer rate reductions, as it's already factored into the utility's upcoming rate filing.

Meta and BlackRock have formed a joint venture to develop a 1GW data center campus in El Paso, Texas, with total development costs of roughly $14 billion. BlackRock will hold an 80% stake and Meta 20%, with Meta contributing $2.3 billion and BlackRock $4.9 billion. Meta will oversee construction and operations and remain the sole occupant under a leaseback structure. The venture begins bringing capacity online in 2028.

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Lotte World Tower rises 554.5 meters over 123 stories in Seoul, South Korea, combining hotel, office, and retail space. The tower is owned and developed by Lotte Property & Development, with a design that draws on traditional Korean ceramics, calligraphy, and porcelain in its tapered, curved form.

Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates (KPF) led the design, with BAUM Architects serving as architect of record. James von Klemperer, KPF's president, worked alongside KPF Principal Trent Tesch on the design.

Structural engineering was led by Leslie E. Robertson Associates, with Chang Minwoo Structural Consultants as engineer of record and Thornton Tomasetti conducting a peer review. SYSKA Hennessy Group handled mechanical, electrical, and plumbing design, with WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff providing peer review.

Lotte Engineering & Construction served as the main contractor, building the tower to a total area of 304,081 square meters. The structure uses a core-and-outrigger system, with the interior organized into four elevator zones covering office, officetel, hotel, and observation/restaurant functions.

The tower was completed in 2017.

Bridgit has become the first company to launch agentic AI for construction workforce planning, the company announced July 29. The launch introduces Bridgit agents and the Bridgit MCP, extending its platform from answering workforce questions to taking action on planners' behalf.

Most construction AI has focused on project execution, such as reading contracts or sharpening estimates, rather than workforce management. Bridgit says staffing decisions remain one of the biggest levers on profitability and retention, especially in today's tight labor market, and its AI is built to close that gap.

The launch includes five agents. Team Builder proposes project teams based on historical workforce data. Assignment Finder matches available workers to open roles. Project Change Digest summarizes project updates, while Project Org Chart builds visual hierarchies for staffing plans. Workforce Brief provides a lookahead schedule of upcoming assignments and time off.

"Agents are the next step. They get the work done," said Mallorie Brodie, CEO and Co-Founder of Bridgit. Each agent shows its reasoning before a planner sees a recommendation, and every action can be edited or overridden.

Bridgit MCP lets contractors query live Bridgit data directly through outside AI tools like Claude, ChatGPT, and Copilot. Bridgit is already used by 40% of top contractors, and the new agents are available now.