AVAIO Digital’s $6 bn Brandon Data Center Shows Little Physical Progress One Year After Groundbreaking

A year after breaking ground, the AVAIO Digital data center in Brandon remains a cleared lot with no structures, despite generous tax exemptions and a claimed August 2027 opening.

1 min read

Developers announced the $6 billion hyperscale campus in August 2025 and broke ground on the 329‑acre Brandon site in September 2025.

One year later, on‑site observations recorded only cleared land and a few tractors, with no structural framing or vertical construction evident.

Construction manager Stuart Hendricks said the delays might stem from complex underground utility work or off‑site fabrication.

The developer has expanded the campus footprint from an initial 175 acres to 329 acres but has not responded to media requests for detailed progress updates.

State and local authorities granted generous data‑center tax exemptions through the Mississippi Development Authority and provided confidential infrastructure improvements in Brandon and Rankin County.

Despite the stalled construction, AVAIO Digital maintains that the facility will be occupied by August 2027, in line with the “Mississippi Advantage” program’s delivery promises.

Broader digital‑infrastructure activity in Mississippi

The Brandon project is part of a wave of large‑scale digital investments in the state, including Amazon’s $10 billion data‑center development in nearby Madison County.

Another high‑profile initiative, Project Stargate—a $500 billion AI infrastructure effort by OpenAI, Oracle and SoftBank—is reported to be progressing after earlier setbacks.