My Go-Tos · All Things Arizona
The companies, investments, and corridors shaping where Valley jobs, and Valley buyers, are headed next.
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Jobs are what move people. When a major employer breaks ground, the housing demand around it follows close behind, and whole submarkets shift because of it. Keeping an eye on who is hiring, who is relocating, and which corridors are getting the infrastructure investment is one of the ways I help clients get ahead of where values are headed, not just where they already are.
Phoenix is in the middle of one of the largest waves of corporate investment in its history, led by semiconductor manufacturing, data centers, and corporate headquarters relocating in from higher-cost states. Here is what is actually happening, and where.
Who's Investing Here
A look at the companies and institutions putting real capital and real jobs into the Valley right now.
A $265 billion total commitment across up to 12 facilities, the largest foreign direct investment of its kind in U.S. history. Estimates put full build-out employment, direct and supplier jobs combined, at well into the tens of thousands.
Intel's Ocotillo campus anchors the Price Road Corridor with its newest high-volume fab, producing the most advanced logic chips made in the U.S. A roughly $20 billion investment directly employing 12,000-plus.
One of the nation's largest homebuilders is relocating its corporate headquarters from Los Angeles to Tempe's Hayden Ferry Lakeside, citing Arizona's business-friendly environment and lower cost profile.
All three are expanding Phoenix-area data center footprints with nine-figure land purchases. Phoenix now ranks #2 nationally for planned data center growth.
An AI-powered advanced manufacturing hub producing precision parts for aerospace and defense, part of a broader wave of advanced manufacturing landing in the East Valley.
Banner Health is Arizona's largest employer at over 55,000 employees. Mayo Clinic is investing nearly $2 billion expanding its Phoenix and Scottsdale campus, keeping healthcare one of the Valley's steadiest hiring sectors.
The AMP-1 plant assembles the Lucid Air and Gravity, with a new midsize platform slated to begin production in late 2026. Worth watching, as Lucid has seen some broader financial headwinds industry-wide.
GPEC helped 44 companies locate or expand in Greater Phoenix in FY2026 alone, creating 8,942 jobs and an organizational-record $671 million in new payroll.
Scottsdale-headquartered since 1993, the public safety technology company (body cameras, TASER) has proposed a new headquarters campus near Loop 101 and Hayden Road worth over $1 billion and up to 5,500 high-wage jobs. The project is tied up in a local rezoning and referendum fight, so whether it breaks ground in Scottsdale or elsewhere is still playing out.
Amkor is building what's on track to become the largest outsourced semiconductor packaging plant in the U.S. at its 170-acre Peoria campus. The company expanded its investment to roughly $12 billion in 2026, with its Arizona workforce expected to grow to about 3,500 employees once both phases are complete.
Where It's Happening
Phoenix doesn't grow evenly. Here's the geography behind the headlines, and what's driving each area.
Anchored by TSMC's campus near Loop 303 and I-17. Master-planned communities like NorthPark and the $7 billion Halo Vista mixed-use district are rising around it, and the 85085 zip code is already seeing above-average home appreciation tied to the fab's hiring.
One of the most-watched data center markets in the country, led by a 2,069-acre technology park near the Palo Verde plant. Buckeye and Surprise are both among Arizona's fastest-growing cities. El Mirage, just next door, has not seen the same growth and is worth noting as the exception.
A mature, built-out tech corridor anchored by Intel. Population growth here has leveled off, but homes near the employment core still command a steady price premium, this is a "built-out and premium" story rather than a fast-growing one.
Advanced manufacturing and defense-adjacent production, led by Hadrian and KoMiCo, plus steady semiconductor supply-chain growth. The city absorbed over $3 billion in capital investment and 47 company locations or expansions in its last fiscal year.
Corporate relocations and semiconductor R&D, including KB Home's incoming headquarters and Tempe's selection as a national hub for U.S. semiconductor advanced-packaging research under the federal CHIPS program.
Primarily residential and retail growth rather than industrial. Queen Creek's hyper-growth years are moderating, and San Tan Valley voted to incorporate as its own city in 2025, meaning the two are starting to grow as separate submarkets rather than one.
Home to Lucid Motors' AMP-1 assembly plant, with new vehicle production expanding through 2026. A newer, more industrial-driven growth story than the core Valley corridors.
Not a submarket itself, but the infrastructure connecting the other two: a $613 million southward extension and a $129 million I-17 interchange project are the roads making the North Phoenix and West Valley growth possible in the first place.
The Established Base
The growth stories above are about where things are headed. This is who already has the most people on payroll today, a mix of healthcare, retail, and a handful of the same names driving the growth corridors.
Arizona employee counts via AZ Big Media / Az Business magazine, December 2025.
A Straight Answer
The investment story is real. The relocations, fab construction, and data center projects above represent genuine, large-scale capital commitments landing in the Valley right now.
The broader job numbers are softer. Metro Phoenix's overall employment count actually dipped some in the first half of 2026, and unemployment ticked up to roughly 4.9 percent, driven mostly by national demographic trends like slower population migration and retirements rather than anything unique to Phoenix.
Put simply: this isn't a story of booming job totals across the board. It's a story of specific, high-profile investment reshaping where growth is concentrated, semiconductors, data centers, healthcare, and corporate relocations, even while the broader numbers even out. I think that nuance matters if you're deciding where to buy.