Amazon is upping its investment again in Spain as it seeks to expand its cloud and AI infrastructure.
The tech giant confirmed at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona that it was committing another $21 billion to the $17 billion it announced in 2024, taking its total spend $38 billion.
The package signifies another escalation in Amazon’s commitment to the country. Its original plan, first revealed in 2021, saw the company earmark $2.9 billion for Spain, but as the demand for AI continues to intensify, that sum has increased rapidly.
Amazon’s operations in Spain are mainly focused on Aragon, a land-locked region in the north-east of the country that borders France.
The company originally launched its AWS Europe (Spain) Region cloud service there in November 2022, but now said it will build data centers in Aragon’s three provinces — Teruel, Huesca and Zaragoza — with much of the capacity dedicated to AI infrastructure.
In addition, the company said it will build supply chain facilities to support the data centers. These will include a server manufacturing plant to complete assembly and testing, a manufacturing fulfilment warehouse, and a dedicated AI and machine learning server manufacturing and repair facility. When fully operational, these facilities are expected to create approximately 1,800 jobs.
Overall, Amazon’s investment in AWS in Spain is predicted to contribute more than $39 billion to the country’s total GDP through 2035, supporting 29,000 full-time jobs, with around 6,700 roles created to construct and staff the data centers.
“We’re supporting Europe’s digital capabilities and expanding cloud and AI infrastructure that businesses and organizations are already using to grow and innovate,” said David Zapolsky, Amazon’s chief global affairs and legal officer, in a press release. “Our investment will create meaningful opportunities for Spanish citizens, including high-skilled jobs and community initiatives.”
Spain’s Prime Minister, Pedro Sanchez, added that the investment showed that Spain should be considered “a safe bet.”
Amazon’s announcement constitutes its second multi-billion international investment focused on AI in under three months, having pledged to commit $35 billion to India in December of last year.
And it comes just days after it was revealed the company was investing another $50 billion in OpenAI, as the tech giant continues to bet big on the potential of AI.
