Owner of ICE detention facility sees big opportunity in AI man camps
AI data center developers are increasingly relying on a style of camp popularized as housing for men working in remote oil fields.
To house the hundreds or thousands of temporary workers needed to build an AI data center, developers are increasingly relying on temporary villages known as man camps.
This style of camp was popularized as housing for men working in remote oil fields . For example, as a Bitcoin mining facility in rural Dickens County, Texas is converted into a 1.6 gigawatt data center, Bloomberg reports its workers are living in gray housing units with access to a gym, a laundromat, game rooms, and a cafeteria that grills steaks on-demand.
A company called Target Hospitality has signed multiple contracts worth a total of $132 million to build and operate the Dickens County camp, which could eventually house more than 1,000 workers.
Target apparently sees the U.S. data center construction boom as its most lucrative growth opportunity, with chief commercial officer Troy Schrenk describing it as “the largest, most actionable pipeline I’ve ever seen.”
Target also owns the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Texas, which holds families detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Court filings have alleged that the center’s food has had worms and mold, and that children have suffered without accommodation for allergies and special diets.
Actively scaling? Fundraising? Planning your next launch? TechCrunch Founder Summit 2026 delivers tactical playbooks and direct access to 1,000+ founders and investors who are building, backing, and closing. Register by March 13 to save up to $300.
Subscribe for the industry’s biggest tech news
Government & Policy Will the Pentagon’s Anthropic controversy scare startups away from defense work? Anthony Ha 6 hours ago
Will the Pentagon’s Anthropic controversy scare startups away from defense work?
AI Grammarly’s ‘expert review’ is just missing the actual experts Anthony Ha 1 day ago
Grammarly’s ‘expert review’ is just missing the actual experts
AI OpenAI hardware exec Caitlin Kalinowski quits in response to Pentagon deal Anthony Ha 1 day ago
OpenAI hardware exec Caitlin Kalinowski quits in response to Pentagon deal
Government & Policy Will the Pentagon’s Anthropic controversy scare startups away from defense work? Anthony Ha 6 hours ago
Will the Pentagon’s Anthropic controversy scare startups away from defense work?
In Brief Owner of ICE detention facility sees big opportunity in AI man camps Anthony Ha 10 hours ago
Owner of ICE detention facility sees big opportunity in AI man camps
AI A roadmap for AI, if anyone will listen Connie Loizos 22 hours ago
What this coverage includes
- Clear source attribution and link to the original publication.
- Editorial framing about relevance, impact, and likely next developments.
- Review for readability, context, and duplication before publication.
Original source:
TechCrunch AIAbout this article
This article was curated and published by AIDaily as part of our editorial coverage of artificial intelligence developments. The content is based on the original source cited below, enriched with editorial context and analysis. Automated tools may assist with translation and initial structuring, but publication decisions, factual review, and contextual framing remain editorial responsibilities.
Learn more about our editorial process