Amazon is investing another US$7.8B in Ohio-based cloud computing operations: state leaders

COLUMBUS, Ohio –

Amazon’s worthwhile cloud business will make investments roughly US$7.8 billion by the top of 2029 to broaden its knowledge centre operations in central Ohio, state leaders introduced Monday, additional advancing the state’s efforts to determine itself because the Midwest’s know-how hub.

The new investments by Amazon Web Services, or AWS, had been introduced by Republican Gov. Mike DeWine and Lt. Gov. Jon Husted, who leads the governor’s know-how workplace. The monetary outlay “further cements Ohio as the heart of our nation’s technology and innovation,” the governor mentioned in an announcement.

AWS launched its first knowledge centres within the area in 2016 and at present operates campuses in two counties in central Ohio, house to the capital metropolis of Columbus. The administration mentioned quite a few areas are being thought of as websites for the brand new knowledge centres, in a variety to be introduced later this yr.

The cloud computing firm is now chargeable for the second largest non-public sector funding within the state’s historical past, behind solely the US$20 billion chip plant introduced by Intel final yr. Facebook and Google additionally function Ohio knowledge centres.

Also underway within the area are a US$3.5 billion battery plant being constructed by Honda and LG Energy Solution of South Korea and a brand new US$110 million Center for Software Innovation at Ohio State University. A chemical analysis clearinghouse headquartered in Columbus has lengthy been a pacesetter in huge knowledge storage and processing.

Once a dependable money cow for Amazon, AWS has just lately begun to really feel stress, as corporations trim cloud computing bills within the face of excessive inflation and fears of a recession. The tech big’s first quarter earnings report confirmed its cloud unit generated US$21.4 billion and was rising at 16 per cent within the first three months of this yr, down from the 37 per cent progress charge a yr earlier.

Still, Roger Wehner, financial growth director for AWS, mentioned the corporate has a long-term dedication to Ohio, having invested greater than US$6 billion within the state since 2015. He mentioned Monday’s funding will embrace new workforce growth and academic packages “that support the next generation of talent by emphasizing collaborative, long-term public and private partnerships across the state.”

The new AWS knowledge centres will include laptop servers, knowledge storage drives, networking tools and different know-how infrastructure for cloud computing. As of final yr, the present operation employed roughly 1,000 individuals throughout the state. JP Nauseef, president and CEO of JobsOhio, the state’s privatized financial growth workplace, mentioned the most recent funding will create 230 direct new jobs and an estimated 1,000 help jobs.