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LATA/Parallax Portsmouth Project Manager Linda Bauer points out to Deputy Secretary Poneman the site where the X-760 Chemical Engineering Building once stood at the Portsmouth Site. Demolition of the 8,000 square foot structure was completed in mid-June with $9.5 million in Recovery Act funding.
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SoftBank's $50 Million Trump Library Gift Preceded Huge Ohio Land Lease

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SoftBank gave $50 million to the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library Foundation in January 2026, a gift that came before a March federal lease for a proposed 10-gigawatt AI campus at the Portsmouth site in Ohio.[1]

On March 20, 2026, the Energy and Commerce departments announced a lease with SB Energy to redevelop about 3,700 acres at the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant near Piketon into the campus.[1] SoftBank confirmed the donation timing in a letter to Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Richard Blumenthal and Rep. Melanie Stansbury released August 6.[1] It did not say whether the gift was tied to the federal land lease or other government commitments.[1]

In January 2026, SoftBank made the $50 million donation to the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library Foundation.[1] SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son has said the Ohio campus could draw up to $500 billion in private investment and would leverage Japan's larger $550 billion U.S. investment commitment.[1]

Democratic lawmakers who received the letter have pressed for more details, and the timing of the donation and the federal lease has become a focus of questions as the multibillion-dollar project moves forward.[1]

  1. MS NOW
Government Ethics and Corruption Federal Land and Energy Policy AI and Tech Investment
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📌 Key Facts

  • In January 2026, SoftBank donated $50 million to the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library Foundation.
  • On March 20, 2026, the Energy and Commerce departments announced a lease with SB Energy to redevelop about 3,700 acres at the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant near Piketon, Ohio, into a 10‑gigawatt AI campus.
  • SoftBank confirmed the donation timing in a letter to Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Richard Blumenthal and Rep. Melanie Stansbury released August 6, 2026, but did not say whether the gift was tied to federal commitments.
  • SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son has said the Ohio campus could draw up to $500 billion in private investment, leveraging Japan’s larger $550 billion U.S. investment commitment.

📰 Source Timeline (1)

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August 06, 2026
9:42 PM
Tech firm’s $50 million Trump library gift preceded massive federal land deal
MS NOW by Lily Becker