Latin America's largest data center ecosystem. 3.2 GW of renewable energy powering the AI capital of the continent — from Rio de Janeiro's Olympic Park to the world.
From Elea Data Centers to Google X's Tapestry, from Goldman Sachs to Porto Maravalley — the players and infrastructure building Latin America's AI capital.
Alessandro Lombardi's Elea Data Centers is building the largest digital infrastructure platform in Brazil. RJO1 is Tier 3 certified and live. RJO2 delivers 80 MW in 2026. Goldman Sachs is the strategic investor backing the expansion.
Oracle signed its MoU in August 2025 at Rio Innovation Week. Tapestry — Google X's moonshot team — signed in November 2025 alongside Axia Energia and Light, securing the 1.5 GW renewable energy backbone.
Rio's answer to Silicon Valley is already delivering. 45 startups raised R$154.9 million. IMPA Tech — Brazil's first applied mathematics faculty for technology — anchors the academic ecosystem. Shell and Eletrobras sponsor.
Deep analysis across six interconnected verticals — from submarine cable infrastructure to AI startup ecosystem mapping.
Elea's RJO1–RJO4 build-out, capacity planning, cooling systems, Tier 3 certification, rack density, and waterless cooling architecture.
Brazil's 90% renewable matrix, wind/solar/hydro sourcing, Axia Energia partnerships, Light grid integration, and carbon neutrality roadmap.
8 submarine cables — AMX-1, BRUSA, GlobeNet, EllaLink, SACS, MONET, Seabras-1 — connecting Rio to US, Europe, and Africa.
Porto Maravalley, IMPA Tech, COPPE/UFRJ, Fiocruz, PUC-Rio, Web Summit Rio, Mata Maravilha, and the innovation corridor.
Infrastructure, energy, investment, ecosystem, and competitive positioning — a comprehensive analysis of the megaproject transforming Rio de Janeiro into the AI capital of Latin America.
Rio AI City is a pioneering data center ecosystem being built at Rio de Janeiro's Olympic Park in Barra da Tijuca — the same complex that hosted the 2016 Summer Olympics. Developed by Elea Data Centers, the project was officially announced by Mayor Eduardo Paes at the Web Summit Rio 2025 opening ceremony in April 2025. The vision: transform Rio de Janeiro into the AI capital of Latin America by building the continent's largest concentration of data center capacity, powered entirely by certified renewable energy.
The project's scale is extraordinary by any global standard. Phase 1 will deliver 1.5 GW of capacity by 2027, with full expansion to 3.2 GW planned by 2032 — placing Rio AI City among the ten largest data center complexes in the world. The first facility, RJO1, is already operational with Tier 3 certification from the Uptime Institute. RJO2 is under construction and will begin delivering approximately 80 MW in 2026. RJO3 and RJO4 will add an additional 120 MW as the next phases come online.
The project's competitive advantages derive from a rare convergence of infrastructure, geography, and timing. Rio de Janeiro sits at the intersection of eight international submarine cables connecting directly to the United States, Europe, and Africa — including AMX-1, BRUSA, GlobeNet, EllaLink, SACS, MONET, and Seabras-1. Brazil's electrical grid delivers 99.8% availability in the Rio metropolitan region, and the national energy matrix is approximately 90% renewable — a structural cost advantage over data center markets in the United States, Europe, and most of Asia.
Elea Data Centers, founded by Alessandro Lombardi, has attracted Goldman Sachs as a strategic investor. The project's institutional credibility was further reinforced by two landmark MoU signings: Oracle in August 2025 during Rio Innovation Week, and Tapestry from Google X (the moonshot factory) in November 2025, alongside Axia Energia (formerly Eletrobras) and Light. These agreements secured the 1.5 GW renewable energy infrastructure backbone and signaled global hyperscaler confidence in Rio's data center ambitions.
Rio de Janeiro's connectivity infrastructure is one of the most compelling arguments for locating hyperscale data center capacity in the city. Eight international submarine cables land in or near Rio, providing direct low-latency connections to the world's three most important digital markets: North America, Europe, and Africa. This is a structural advantage that cannot be replicated by inland data center markets such as São Paulo — which depends on terrestrial backhaul to reach submarine cable landing points on the coast.
The BRUSA cable provides a direct connection from Virginia Beach (the epicenter of US East Coast data center infrastructure) to Rio de Janeiro and Fortaleza, enabling low-latency access to the US market. EllaLink connects Brazil directly to Portugal without intermediary stops — the first direct submarine cable between South America and Europe, operational since 2021. The SACS cable (South Atlantic Cable System) links Brazil to Angola's capital Luanda, providing Africa's most direct route to Latin American digital infrastructure. Google's MONET cable connects Boca Raton, Florida, to Praia Grande and Rio de Janeiro.
On the energy front, Brazil's electricity generation is approximately 90% renewable — dominated by hydroelectric (65%), wind (12%), solar (8%), and biomass (5%), according to EPE (Empresa de Pesquisa Energética). This renewable dominance provides Rio AI City with two critical advantages: significantly lower energy costs compared to data center markets relying on fossil fuel generation, and inherent ESG compliance that satisfies institutional investor requirements and corporate sustainability mandates from hyperscaler tenants.
Axia Energia (the successor entity to Eletrobras following its 2022 privatization) and Light — Rio's primary electricity distributor — both signed MoUs with Elea in November 2025 as part of the Tapestry agreement. These partnerships are designed to guarantee the 1.5 GW of certified renewable energy that Phase 1 requires, with grid reliability backed by Rio's 99.8% network availability — one of the highest uptime figures for any major data center market in the developing world.
| Cable | Route | Connectivity |
|---|---|---|
| AMX-1 | USA ↔ Brazil ↔ Colombia | Americas · High capacity |
| BRUSA | USA (Virginia Beach) ↔ Brazil (Rio/Fortaleza) | US direct · Low latency |
| GlobeNet | USA ↔ Bermuda ↔ Brazil ↔ Venezuela ↔ Colombia | Pan-American |
| EllaLink | Brazil (Fortaleza) ↔ Portugal | Europe direct · No intermediaries |
| SACS | Brazil ↔ Angola (Luanda) | Africa direct · South Atlantic |
| MONET | USA (Boca Raton) ↔ Brazil (Praia Grande/RJ) | Google · High capacity |
| Seabras-1 | USA (New York) ↔ Brazil (SP/RJ) | US direct |
| South Atlantic Cable | Brazil ↔ Cameroon | West Africa |
Rio AI City does not exist in isolation. It is the anchor of a broader digital transformation ecosystem that includes three interconnected initiatives: Porto Maravalley (the innovation hub), IMPA Tech (the academic engine), and Mata Maravilha (the R$5 billion urban regeneration project). Together, these initiatives are creating an innovation corridor that stretches from the revitalized Porto Maravilha waterfront through downtown Rio to the Olympic Park in Barra da Tijuca.
Porto Maravalley was inaugurated in April 2024 as Rio's answer to Silicon Valley — an innovation hub located within the Porto Maravilha urban regeneration zone. In its first year of operation, the hub's 70 companies (45 of which are startups) raised R$154.9 million in funding and generated R$974 million in revenue. Under CEO Daniel Barros, Porto Maravalley focuses on six key sectors: energy, sustainability, fintech, health, creative economy, and deep tech. The hub is sponsored by Shell and Eletrobras, with R$45 million invested by Rio's City Hall.
IMPA Tech — operated by IMPA (Instituto de Matemática Pura e Aplicada), one of the world's premier mathematics research institutions — is Brazil's first undergraduate faculty dedicated to applied mathematics for technology. Located within Porto Maravalley, IMPA Tech provides the academic talent pipeline that data-intensive industries require. IMPA itself has been a global leader in mathematical research for decades, and its expansion into applied technology education represents a strategic investment in Brazil's AI readiness.
Mata Maravilha, announced in May 2025, is a R$5 billion urban regeneration project covering 223,400 m² in the Porto Maravilha zone. Conceived by Alexandre Allard and Autonomy Capital, the project will reforest the area with 40,000 native Atlantic Forest trees, creating a green technology campus that integrates 4 hotels, 2,500 residential units, and innovation-focused commercial spaces. The project represents the convergence of urban sustainability and digital infrastructure — a vision for what 21st-century technology districts should look like.
The broader research ecosystem supporting Rio's AI ambitions includes COPPE/UFRJ (Latin America's largest graduate engineering school), LNCC (Brazil's National Scientific Computing Laboratory), Fiocruz (one of the world's leading public health institutions), and PUC-Rio (a top-ranked private university with strong computer science programs). Web Summit Rio, which has committed to the city through 2030, adds an annual injection of international visibility and networking with an estimated economic impact of R$1.8 billion across its eight editions.
Brazil's data center market is the largest in Latin America and one of the fastest-growing in the world. According to Brasscom (Brazil's Information Technology Association), projected investment in the Brazilian data center sector will reach US$11.4 billion by 2026. The AI-specific data center market was valued at approximately US$550 million in 2025, with projections to reach US$1.24 billion by 2030 — reflecting the surge in demand for GPU-dense, high-power-density facilities that can serve large language models, generative AI workloads, and enterprise AI inference at scale.
The competitive landscape is dominated by four major operators. Ascenty (owned by Digital Realty and Brookfield) operates 28 sites across Brazil and is the market share leader by number of facilities. Scala Data Centers operates 23 sites with a planned campus capacity of 4.7 GW — the largest single-operator buildout in Latin America until Elea's Rio AI City announcement. Elea Data Centers operates 12 sites across Brazil, with the Rio AI City project representing a generational leap in scale. Equinix operates 9 Brazilian sites (including RJ1, RJ2, and RJ3 in Rio), providing interconnection and colocation for enterprise customers.
What distinguishes Rio AI City from these competitors is not merely scale but the convergence of infrastructure advantages: direct submarine cable connectivity (São Paulo's data center market lacks this), 100% renewable energy certification (a growing requirement for hyperscaler tenants), waterless cooling systems (addressing the industry's water consumption crisis), and the Olympic Park location — purpose-built infrastructure that provides the physical space, electrical capacity, and fiber connectivity density that hyperscale facilities require. The institutional support from Rio's City Hall — through the Secretariat of Economic Development, CCPar, and Invest.Rio — provides regulatory clarity and permitting efficiency that accelerates the build timeline.
| Operator | Sites (Brazil) | Key Differentiator | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ascenty (Digital Realty/Brookfield) | 28 | Market share leader, nationwide | Large-scale campus |
| Scala Data Centers | 23 | Largest planned campus (4.7 GW) | Hyperscale-ready |
| Elea Data Centers | 12 | Rio AI City — 3.2 GW at Olympic Park | AI-optimized, 100% renewable |
| Equinix | 9 | Interconnection, enterprise colocation | RJ1, RJ2, RJ3 in Rio |
| ODATA (Aligned) | 6+ | Continuous expansion | Growing footprint |
Rio AI City's story begins not in 2025 but in 2009, when Porto Maravilha — the largest urban regeneration project in Latin American history — was established by Municipal Law 101/2009. The 5 million m² transformation of Rio's port zone laid the physical and institutional groundwork for the digital ecosystem that would follow fifteen years later. The 2016 Olympic Games built the Olympic Park infrastructure in Barra da Tijuca, and the creation of CDURP (the Porto Maravilha urban development company), the VLT light rail system (28 km connecting downtown to the port), and landmark institutions like the Museum of Tomorrow and AquaRio transformed the city's infrastructure baseline.
The acceleration phase began in April 2024 with the inauguration of Porto Maravalley and IMPA Tech. By April 2025, Mayor Eduardo Paes announced Rio AI City at Web Summit Rio — setting off a cascade of institutional commitments. The Oracle MoU came in August 2025 at Rio Innovation Week. The Tapestry/Google X agreement followed in November 2025, alongside energy partnerships with Axia and Light. In May 2025, the Mata Maravilha project added R$5 billion of urban regeneration investment to the ecosystem.
Looking forward, 2026 brings the delivery of RJO2's first 80 MW of capacity. Phase 1's full 1.5 GW will be operational by 2027. The horizon target of 3.2 GW by 2032 would place Rio AI City among the world's top ten data center complexes — a transformation from Olympic legacy infrastructure to global AI hub in under a decade. The Web Summit Rio commitment through 2030 (with an estimated R$1.8 billion economic impact across all editions) ensures sustained international visibility throughout the build-out period.
| Year | Milestone | Significance |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Porto Maravilha created | 5M m² urban regeneration begins |
| 2016 | Olympic Games · Park built | Infrastructure foundation laid |
| Apr 2024 | Porto Maravalley + IMPA Tech | Innovation hub operational |
| Apr 2025 | Rio AI City announced (Web Summit) | 1.5 GW → 3.2 GW vision revealed |
| May 2025 | Mata Maravilha announced | R$5B urban regeneration project |
| Aug 2025 | Oracle MoU signed | Hyperscaler validation |
| Nov 2025 | Tapestry/Google X + Axia + Light MoU | Energy backbone secured |
| 2026 | RJO2 delivers ~80 MW | Second facility online |
| 2027 | Phase 1 complete — 1.5 GW | Largest hub in Latin America |
| 2032 | Full capacity — 3.2 GW | Top 10 global data center complex |
Rio AI City is a pioneering data center ecosystem at Rio de Janeiro's Olympic Park, developed by Elea Data Centers. With initial capacity of 1.5 GW of 100% certified renewable energy (Phase 1), scalable to 3.2 GW by 2032, it will be Latin America's largest data center hub and one of the ten largest in the world. The project uses waterless cooling systems, green skin architecture, and AI-optimized high-density rack infrastructure.
Rio AI City is owned by Elea Data Centers (founded by Alessandro Lombardi), backed by Goldman Sachs. It has MoUs with Oracle (August 2025), Tapestry from Google X (November 2025), Axia Energia, and Light. Institutional support from Rio's City Hall through the Secretariat of Economic Development, CCPar, and Invest.Rio.
RJO1 is already operational with Tier 3 certification. RJO2 is under construction and will deliver approximately 80 MW in 2026. RJO3 and RJO4 will add another 120 MW. Full Phase 1 (1.5 GW) completes by 2027. Expansion to 3.2 GW is planned for 2032.
Porto Maravalley is an innovation hub in Rio's port zone housing 70 companies (45 startups), anchored by IMPA Tech. In year one, startups raised R$154.9 million and generated R$974 million in revenue. Sponsored by Shell and Eletrobras. Key sectors: energy, sustainability, fintech, health, creative economy.
Rio offers 8 international submarine cables connecting directly to US, Europe, and Africa; 99.8% electrical grid availability; Brazil's 90% renewable energy matrix (low cost advantage); 2nd largest municipal GDP in Brazil (R$364 billion); and a growing fintech, energy, and creative economy ecosystem. Rio AI City at the Olympic Park combines all of these structural advantages in a single location.
Rio AI City runs on 100% certified renewable energy — wind, solar, and hydroelectric. Phase 1 delivers 1.5 GW by 2027, scaling to 3.2 GW by 2032. Partnerships with Axia Energia and Light secure the supply. Brazil's energy matrix is approximately 90% renewable, providing a structural advantage over fossil-fuel-dependent data center markets globally.
Weekly analysis of Rio's AI ecosystem — data centers, startups, infrastructure, energy, and policy. For investors, researchers, and decision-makers.
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