AI Land Grab: Universities Sell Campuses to Tech Giants for Data Centers
fortune · reddit · 2026-08-12
The AI boom is posing a physical threat to American universities. As data centers demand massive parcels with power, water, and fiber access, universities are finding their landholdings more valuable as AI infrastructure than for classrooms or research.
For instance, George Washington University has sold its Virginia campus to Amazon. A former professor noted this reflects a broader shift in higher ed driven by financial pressures and the massive appetite for data center real estate. Meanwhile, the University of Michigan is pursuing a $1.25 billion high-performance computing and research center.
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