IN A CURRENTLY UNOCCUPIED SPACE IN THE AIRWORLD CENTER SOUTH OF KCI
Lambda, the Superintelligence Cloud, has announced it is planning to transform an unoccupied 2009-built facility in Kansas City in Platte County “into a state-of-the-art AI (artificial intelligence) factory.”
According to its website, Lambda builds gigawatt-scale AI factories for training and inference.
In response to a query from The Landmark, Tina Chace, executive director for the Platte County Economic Development Council, said EDC officials are under a non-disclosure agreement on this project so she could not disclose the exact address of the AI factory, but she did say it is in the AirWorld Center.
The AirWorld Center is a business park located just south of Kansas City International Airport (KCI), with multiple properties on NW AirWorld Drive in the 64153 zip code. It has direct access to I-29.
The project will receive tax incentives from the state of Missouri.
“From prototyping to serving billions of users in production, we build the underlying infrastructure that powers AI,” says its website.
Lambda was founded in 2012 by published AI engineers.
Lambda’s announcement comes on the heels of a recent announcement that a $100 billion data center campus will be built in the Hunt Midwest KCI-29 industrial site in Platte County near I-29 and Mexico City Avenue. That KCI-29 data center complex is reported to be a Google project.
Lambda says its mission “is to make compute as ubiquitous as electricity and give every person access to artificial intelligence.”
The Platte County Economic Development Council in a Facebook post last week thanked “many of our regional partners for helping make this project a success.”
The Platte County EDC listed those partners as including the State of Missouri, the Missouri Department of Economic Development, Missouri Partnership, Kansas City Area Development Council, City of Kansas City, Economic Development Corporation of KCMO, Port KC, Evergy, Spire, and the KC Tech Council.
“Missouri is proud to welcome Lambda as they create new, high-quality jobs and strengthen our state’s technology and innovation ecosystem,” said Gov. Mike Kehoe. “Their decision to grow here demonstrates the confidence that leading companies have in our people, our infrastructure, and our pro-business environment. It’s been said that AI is the space race of our time, and we must win. Data centers are the future and critical to our continued ability to drive technological innovation, strengthen our economy, and safeguard our national security interests. Partnerships like this ensure Missouri remains at the forefront of America’s winning strategy.”
This Kansas City deployment is part of Lambda’s mission to build the infrastructure backbone for the Superintelligence era.
Under the agreement, Lambda is planning to develop and operate the facility as the sole tenant.
The site is expected to launch in early 2026 with 24MW of capacity, and the potential to scale up to more than 100MW in the future.
When the facility launches in early 2026, it will initially feature more than 10,000 NVIDIA Blackwell Ultra GPUs – a footprint expected to double over time. The supercomputer is dedicated to a single Lambda customer for large-scale AI training and inference under a multi-year agreement.
“Our Kansas City development perfectly embodies Lambda’s strategy: a prime location for our customers, an accelerated deployment timeline, and an unwavering commitment to on-time delivery,” said Ken Patchett, VP of Datacenter Infrastructure at Lambda. “We believe this success stems from completely rethinking how AI factories should be built and operated.”
The initial phase of the project is expected to include upwards of half a billion dollars and several employees and contracted staff working on-site, maintaining the extensive equipment and machinery. Future phases at the site are still being evaluated and discussed with local partners, Lambda indicates.
“Lambda’s investment in the Kansas City area emphasizes our state’s growing strength in technology and innovation,” said Michelle Hataway, director of the department of economic development. “DED is proud to support future-focused projects like this that enhance our workforce, drive sustainable growth across the region, and create opportunities for Missourians to prosper.”
What others are saying
“Today in Kansas City, we are building the infrastructure to capitalize on AI’s boom,” said Mayor Quinton Lucas last week. “An investment of this scale in the Northland highlights our city’s strength in technology, innovation, and job creation, and brings an empty asset back to life through creative reuse.”
“This investment from Lambda showcases the Kansas City region’s ability to creatively reimagine assets and attract transformative investment,” said Tim Cowden, president and CEO, Kansas City Area Development Council. “Data centers are critical to powering the innovation economy, and Kansas City wields the strength of infrastructure, reliable power and a deep IT talent pool that continues to draw leading technology companies to the region.”
“Choosing Kansas City, Missouri, for a next-generation AI data center sends a clear message: Missouri is the tech leader in the center of the country,” said Subash Alias, CEO of Missouri Partnership. “We applaud Lambda for building an AI factory in the heart of the U.S. This is a generational investment that will expand opportunity for Missourians and accelerate the digital economy.”
About Lambda
Lambda, The Superintelligence Cloud, builds gigawatt-scale AI factories for training and inference. From prototyping to serving billions of users in production, we build the underlying infrastructure that powers AI.
To learn more about Lambda, visit lambda.ai.
About the Missouri Department of Economic Development
The Missouri Department of Economic Development (DED) works to create an environment that encourages economic growth by supporting Missouri’s businesses and diverse industries, strengthening our communities, developing a talented and skilled workforce, and maintaining a high quality of life.
“As one team built around the customer and driven by data, DED aspires to be the best economic development department in the Midwest. Through its various initiatives, DED is helping create opportunities for Missourians to prosper,” the DED says in its promotional materials.
