xAI turns retired 747 jet engines into power plants for its Memphis AI complex

Eight converted GE engines now feed Colossus 2 as grid delays push AI companies to build their own electricity supply Elon Musk’s xAI has found a new use for old Boeing 747 parts: keeping its artificial intelligence supercomputers running. The company has installed eight converted jet-engine power units at its plant in Southaven, Mississippi, to supply the Colossus 2 data center complex near Memphis, Tennessee. The New York Times reported the deployment on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, after an investigation that drew on satellite imagery. From the runway to the server farm The units started life as General Electric CF6-80C2 engines, the workhorses that powered Boeing 747s. ProEnergy, a company that repurposes aircraft turbines, rebuilt them to run on natural gas rather than jet fuel. Each unit produces approximately 50 megawatts. On paper, eight of them at that rating add up to roughly 400 megawatts of generating capacity. The deep research behind the reporting identifies xAI as operating under the name SpaceXAI in connection with the site. Mississippi regulators issued the permits covering the jet-engine units on March 11, 2026. The emissions fine print Those permits come with a not...