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Indiana Data Center Intel
Latest data center news, projects, power and policy across Indiana — updated daily.
Recent Indiana data center news
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7x24 Exchange's Dennis Cronin on the Data Center Workforce Crisis: The Talent Cliff Is Already Here
Dennis Cronin (7x24 Exchange founding member and MCGA board member) warns the data center industry is already facing a structural workforce crisis and calls for coordinated industry investment, standardized certification, and scaled community-college pathways.
- Main announcement/action: Cronin estimates a roughly one million job gap (467,000–498,000 core operational roles + ~514,000 emerging AI/sustainability/security roles), calls to replace five-year experience requirements with an entry-level certification, and urges a shared funding approach across operators, vendors, contractors, and manufacturers (he cites $60B in data centers announced this year and advocates for $1B to scale training).
- Background and details: Cronin critiques internal academies and commercial courses (commercial training often ~$1,000 per day per person), highlights community colleges (Cleveland CC, Northern Virginia CC, Southside CC) as scalable two-year technician pipelines, and outlines a workforce ecosystem of outreach, standardized curriculum, certification labs, apprenticeships, and employer commitments.
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240-Mile Network to Expand High-speed Dark Fiber in Indianapolis
Light Source Communications (LSC) announced a new network build out: a 240-mile dark fiber route in Indianapolis, projected for completion by the third quarter of 2027.
- Main announcement: LSC will build a 240-mile dark fiber route in Indianapolis, with targeted completion by Q3 2027, intended to enable high-speed processing for GPUs, support AI workloads, and expand capacity for hyperscalers, neoclouds, and data centers. The build targets connectivity within the city’s financial district, government institutions, and education sectors.
- Background and other details: LSC stated the route will strengthen regional connectivity and enhance network resilience; the provider also has ongoing construction projects in Las Vegas, Phoenix, and Tulsa. This article is an announcement of the new Indianapolis build (not a retrospective report on a previously completed project).
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GenAI Pushes Cloud to $119B Quarter as AI Networking Race Intensifies
Synergy Research Group reported a major market acceleration in cloud infrastructure spending and Cisco introduced a new high-throughput ASIC to address AI networking bottlenecks.
- Main announcement: Synergy Research Group reported Q4 enterprise cloud infrastructure services at $119.1 billion (up ~$12B sequentially and $29B YoY) and a full-year market of $419 billion; Synergy estimates ~30% constant-currency YoY growth in Q4 and highlighted GenAI as the dominant demand driver. The report notes public IaaS/PaaS grew 34% YoY in Q4 and market shares: Amazon 28%, Microsoft 21%, Google 14%; Synergy also reports CoreWeave > $1.5 billion in quarterly cloud revenue.
- Product and infrastructure details: At Cisco Live EMEA, Cisco launched the Silicon One G300 ASIC (102.4 Tbps) to power Nexus 9000/8000 systems targeting hyperscalers, neoclouds and sovereign clouds, claiming 33% higher network utilization, 28% reduction in AI job completion time, support for 1.6T Ethernet, integrated telemetry and fully liquid-cooled switch designs with ~70% energy efficiency improvement and up to 50% optical power reduction for new 800G optics.
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The 50 States of Power Decarbonization: States and Utilities Navigate Large Load Customer Demand in 2025
The N.C. Clean Energy Technology Center (NCCETC) released its 2025 Annual Review and Q4 2025 edition of the 50 States of Power Decarbonization report.
- Report release & headline findings: The NCCETC released the 2025 annual review and Q4 2025 quarterly report, finding 49 states plus Puerto Rico took a total of 667 actions on electric power decarbonization and resource planning in 2025; 37 states took 104 actions related to large load customers. The report highlights top trends including new large-load tariffs, increased natural gas capacity additions, state-led procurement of energy storage, and consideration of advanced nuclear.
- Background & concrete details: The release documents integrated resource plan filings showing planned capacity additions of 144,405 MW solar, 125,016 MW natural gas, 58,581 MW storage, 58,381 MW wind, and 56,475 MW planned coal retirements in 2025; it notes 400 actions tracked in Q4 2025 plus more than 270 introduced bills, and calls out surging data center development driving large-load policy responses.
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What’s up with data centers in Minnesota?
Fresh Energy calls on Minnesota regulators and the Public Utilities Commission to adopt policies ensuring data center development benefits Minnesotans and aligns with the state’s 100% clean electricity by 2040 law.
Main announcement / action: Fresh Energy urges the Commission to implement better load forecasting, rate design (large-load tariffs), and transparency on water and behind-the-meter generation to ensure data centers pay their fair share; Minnesota currently has 13 operating data centers with 43 MW of capacity and 12 planned projects totaling 1,120 MW (as of January 2026). Key regulatory actions already in motion include Xcel Energy’s large-load tariff filed July 2025 and the Commission requiring Dakota Electric to file an additional tariff in December 2025.
Background and details: Fresh Energy cites national context such as data center investment growth from $13.8 billion to $41.2 billion per year and nearly 100 GW of proposed behind-the-meter gas plants nationwide; it recommends using IRP updates, stochastic/scenario-based forecasting, and tariff rate classes so utilities do not overbuild infrastructure or shift costs to residential customers.
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Data center critics speak out at Indy environmental committee meeting
Dozens of residents and the Hoosier Environmental Council turned out at the City of Indianapolis Environmental Sustainability Committee meeting to protest data-center development and urge stricter oversight.
- Main announcement: The Hoosier Environmental Council asked the committee to explore a pause on data center construction, consider removing discretionary economic incentives, and fully evaluate projects’ energy, water and land use and potential impacts to the electrical grid as part of permitting decisions. The group emphasized community impact and identified energy, water, land as four key aspects to assess.
- Background and details: Public commenters called for stronger state development, building and zoning standards or a moratorium; the article cites a Citizen Action Coalition report saying nearly 30 data centers are proposed or under construction in Indiana. The meeting was reported on January 29, 2026 and included presentations from experts on grid and environmental impacts.
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City-County Council's Environmental Sustainability Committee discuss future of data centers
The City-County Council’s Environmental Sustainability Committee held a meeting to review data center impacts and potential policy responses.
- Committee review and stakeholders: The Environmental Sustainability Committee (City-County Council) held a meeting on Jan 28, 2026 to discuss data center impacts; the Office of Sustainability brought in three national organizations to consult, residents gave public comment, and speakers urged policies on definition, setbacks, decibel restrictions, power consumption, and cost offsets. Councilor Jared Evans said councilors must consider technology trends and whether large centers remain necessary. A resident speaker referenced 25 million gallons of water leaving Eagle Creek.
- Specific project and next steps: Company Metrobloks proposes a 154-thousand square foot data center at the former Sherman Drive-In; the zoning hearing was pushed to next month. Community group Protect Martindale-Brightwood organized a meeting with Metrobloks on Monday at 6 p.m. at Frederick Douglass Park Family Center. A public commenter said they will ask Councilor Jesse Brown to call a six-month moratorium on all data centers (public comment, not an enacted ordinance).
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Lawmakers Urge Faster Tech Investment as U.S. Competes With China
U.S. Senators Todd Young and Maria Cantwell urged faster federal action to secure America’s technological edge over China at a CSIS event on Jan. 28, 2026.
- Announcement: Senators Todd Young (R-Ind.) and Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) called for accelerated investment in research & development, infrastructure, and workforce training; they prioritized semiconductor export controls, hardened critical infrastructure, and clearer AI regulatory frameworks to reduce investment risk and sustain technological leadership.
- Event & context: Remarks were delivered at a forum hosted by Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS); they highlighted permitting delays for data centers and energy infrastructure as barriers and urged international technology partnerships to set global standards.
- Date: Jan. 28, 2026
- Location: Washington
- Agenda/subject: Securing America’s technological edge, investment and defense priorities, and AI regulatory frameworks
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Modernize SMB Infrastructure with Dell NativeEdge
Dell Technologies promotes Dell NativeEdge as a full-stack edge operations solution and cites Enterprise Strategy Group validations and SMB case studies.
- Main announcement: Dell Technologies positions Dell NativeEdge as a centralized, policy-driven control plane for VMs and containers, with zero-trust security and zero-touch provisioning to manage small data centers and edge sites; ESG technical validation reports 92% time savings for device onboarding, 79% overall time savings, and an estimated $3.3 million in cost savings over three years.
- Background and supporting details: The article cites a 500‑respondent ESG (now part of Omdia) survey (Feb 2025) showing productivity, AI support, and cybersecurity as top drivers for SMB IT investment; includes case studies where MatrixSpace saved ~one year of software development time and Nature Fresh Farms (operating 250 acres) achieved 100% PLU sticker accuracy and cut water purification cycles by ~60%.
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Vanderbilt Report Argues for 'Dig Once' Policies to Reduce Fiber Instillation Costs
Vanderbilt Policy Accelerator released a report in December recommending strong “dig once” laws to require installation of conduit during any roadway excavation, shifting conduit installation responsibility toward governments to reduce costs and speed fiber deployment.
- Main recommendation: Require strong “dig once” laws for federally funded road construction so governments install conduit whenever roads are built or repaired; the report cites studies finding 75% to 90% of fiber deployment costs stem from digging up and repairing roadways (Fiber Broadband Association 2024; FHWA 2012).
- Context and details: The report notes federal legislative attempts were weakened into notification requirements (states notify ISPs when construction occurs); highlights state examples such as Utah (62.5% fiber coverage vs national average 49%) and other states with laws (California, Washington, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa); it references June 2026 BEAD revisions and urges Congress, during 2026 surface transportation reauthorization, to mandate dig once on federally funded projects.