Who builds Texas's
data centers?

Texas is building 23.5 GW of new AI data centers across 63 sites. 3.2 GW is already running, and 20.3 GW is still being built. The biggest builders here are Skybox Datacenters, CoreWeave, Meta, Google.

At the busiest point, about 38,922 skilled workers will be on these sites at once, across all the trades. But the work is not split evenly — some trades will be short, and some will not. That is what decides whether it is worth training up.

Should you train up for this? It depends on the trade. In Texas, the data centers look most short on ironworkers, carpenters, and electricians. Those are the best bets right now. Here is the read, trade by trade.

Ironworkers — worth training up: YES, big shortage. At the busiest point the data centers need about 5,473 ironworkers, but only about 2,522 of Texas's ironworkers are free to take it on — the rest are busy with their regular jobs, which do not stop. That leaves Texas short about 2,951. When builders cannot find enough ironworkers, the ones already working put in overtime (bigger paychecks), and builders pay to train new people and bring in workers from other states.

Carpenters — worth training up: YES, tight. The data centers need about 6,690 carpenters at the busiest point — close to all of the ~8,600 carpenters Texas has free for this kind of work. Expect overtime, steady work, and builders willing to train.

Electricians — worth training up: YES, tight. The data centers need about 10,947 electricians at the busiest point — close to all of the ~17,970 electricians Texas has free for this kind of work. Expect overtime, steady work, and builders willing to train.

Network/low-voltage technicians — could go either way. The data centers need about 2,433 network/low-voltage technicians, and Texas has about 4,298 free for this kind of work. Enough to mostly cover it, but it will be busy, with some overtime.

Sheet metal workers — could go either way. The data centers need about 1,216 sheet metal workers, and Texas has about 2,568 free for this kind of work. Enough to mostly cover it, but it will be busy, with some overtime.

Pipefitters — could go either way. The data centers need about 4,257 pipefitters, and Texas has about 10,572 free for this kind of work. Enough to mostly cover it, but it will be busy, with some overtime.

HVAC/R technicians — could go either way. The data centers need about 2,433 hvac/r technicians, and Texas has about 8,018 free for this kind of work. Enough to mostly cover it, but it will be busy, with some overtime.

Data center technicians — worth training up: YES. Once these data centers open they will need about 3,447 data center technicians to run them, day and night. These are permanent jobs, and there are not enough local data center technicians to fill them — so they hire and train. Steady, long-term work.

These are some of the best-paying jobs you can get without a four-year degree. When a trade is short, builders run overtime and pay to train, and experienced workers can clear $100,000 a year, with health care and a pension through the union.

The building jobs run for a few years; the jobs that run the data centers last longer. Either way, a shortage is good news if you are in that trade. To start in Texas, look at the apprenticeship programs for the trade you want. Sources: a national survey of data-center building plans, plus U.S. jobs and pay data.