Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin Mulls City Near Austin To House Next Big Venture

Billionaire Jeff Bezos’ space technology company, Blue Origin, is eyeing a city northeast of Austin as a potential home for a massive project as it expands operations nationwide. 

The Hutto Economic Development Corp. this week held a public hearing in Hutto, a suburb of Austin, to consider “Project Blue Hub,” the Austin Business Journal reported. No vote was taken, but officials described the initiative as a 1.3M SF manufacturing and research and development project that would bring more than 2,000 jobs to the area over the next five years and capital investment of more than $650M. 

Blue Origin wasn’t mentioned by name during the hearing, but the ABJ reported that Bezos’ venture had previously targeted Hutto as a possible location for a nearly $1B project, citing several sources.

If the plan goes through, it would be another leap forward for the space industry’s growth across Texas. The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas reported last month that the industry “has established a strong foothold in Texas,” with several companies “pursuing a variety of space-based projects that have included rocket launches, satellite-based communications and lunar exploration.” SpaceX moved its headquarters to Texas in 2024 and runs its Starbase launch facility near Boca Chica.

Blue Origin, founded in 2000, has ambitious plans to “build a road to space” by making space exploration accessible and manufacturing reusable rockets. In March, the company requested federal approval to launch tens of thousands of satellites for an orbital data center as part of another endeavor dubbed Project Sunrise. 

Metro Austin houses several big names in aerospace, among them CesiumAstro engineering company, which is planning to expand. Williamson County is a rising aerospace hub, boasting companies including Firefly Aerospace Inc. The county’s Economic Development Partnership has pitched land for a dedicated “space corridor,” according to the ABJ.

Hutto, 25 miles northeast of Austin in Williamson County, is one of the fastest-growing cities in the U.S. It sits near the city of Taylor, which also houses space-related facilities. The ABJ reported that Blue Origin might be looking at build-to-suit offerings in Hutto to begin operations imminently.

Blue Origin has been seeking a base for Project Blue Hub for months, according to the ABJ, filing permits in March for an 800K SF manufacturing facility on its campus in Florida’s Merritt Island, home to Kennedy Space Center, as part of its Project Horizon. It wasn’t immediately clear if the projects are connected.

Last week, Blue Origin announced the expansion of its thruster production in Alabama, and in April, the company filed plans for a new building on its campus in Merritt Island.