The University of California, Berkeley held a ribbon-cutting ceremony in May of 2026 to celebrate the approaching completion of the Barbara and Gerson Bakar Gateway building. The $557 million facility will house the College of Computing, Data Science, and Society (CDSS) and bring together approximately 1,325 faculty, students, and staff to elevate education and accelerate AI-driven discovery.
The University of Nevada, Reno is constructing a $75 million facility to expand capacity for the Nevada State Public Health Laboratory (a branch of the School of Public Health). Designed by Van Woert Bigotti, the 55,000-sf building will offer flexible laboratories, dedicated research and screening environments, and specialized containment areas including a BSL-3 lab. A new toxicology program will focus on substance abuse issues. Sophisticated conference rooms will be accompanied by collaboration spaces and staff offices.
The University of Louisville broke ground in April of 2026 on the Health Sciences Building to advance discovery and provide the critical infrastructure needed to prepare the next generation of healthcare providers in Kentucky and beyond. Designed by Champlin | EOP and Perkins&Will, the $280 million facility will act as a nexus for the schools of medicine, nursing, public health, information sciences, and dentistry.
The Auburn Research and Technology Foundation (ARTF) broke ground in April of 2026 on a $22 million facility for Auburn University's RFID Lab in Alabama. The 100,000-sf building was designed by Goodwyn Mills Cawood to meet the growing demands of innovation, research, and collaboration in advancing the development of radio frequency identification technologies.
Louisiana State University (LSU) opened the Our Lady of the Lake Health Interdisciplinary Science Building in April of 2026 in Baton Rouge. Serving as a vibrant nexus for scientific inquiry, STEM education, and industry collaboration, the new home of the College of Science drives innovation in the five key focus areas of geology and geophysics, chemistry, biological sciences, mathematics, and astronomy and physics.
AbbVie is planning to build a 185-acre pharmaceutical campus in Durham, N.C. The $1.4 billion development will integrate AI with advanced manufacturing and laboratory technologies to enhance quality control and support the company’s pipelines of immunology, neuroscience, and oncology medicines. Comprising approximately 440,000 sf, the first phase of construction will begin in 2026 to create manufacturing plants for small volume parenteral (SVP) drug products.
The University of Florida opened the Whitney Marine Research Center in April of 2026 in Marineland, Fla. Designed by Lord Aeck Sargent and TTV Architects, the $41.2 million facility more than doubles the available research space for the Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience while expanding capacity for education and conservation efforts. The 38,000-sf building features 12 leading-edge labs, a dedicated microscopy area, aquaculture venues, and a maker space equipped with 3D printers and laser cutters.
The University of Utah Health dedicated the James LeVoy Sorenson Center for Medical Innovation in April of 2026 in Salt Lake City. Designed by VCBO Architecture, the $50 million facility will foster hands-on discovery, bridge connections between academia and industry, and accelerate the translation of leading-edge science into improved patient outcomes. The 60,000-sf building houses an ISO 8-compliant cleanroom, as well as advanced prototyping and assembly labs with the latest equipment for rapid design and fabrication.
Texas A&M University broke ground in April of 2026 on the Texas A&M Semiconductor Institute on the RELLIS campus in Bryan. Designed by Stantec, the $226 million research and development building aims to elevate regional leadership in the industry and advance next-generation discoveries. The collaborative 80,000-sf structure will feature Class 100 and 1000 cleanrooms modeled after fabrication facilities to enable full-scale production.
Aviva Investors completed construction in April of 2026 on a 56,000-sf life sciences facility in Cambridge in the United Kingdom. Located in the Chesterford Research Park, the Sidney Sussex Building houses 10 individual R&D suites that range upwards from 2,245 sf in size and offer wet labs, open office environments, and write-up areas. BCR Infinity Architects designed the flexible structure to be scaleable, providing the ability to combine units to accommodate unique tenant requirements and support growth.
Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) opened the Vista Pavilion in April of 2026 as an extension to its Marquam Hill campus in Portland. Designed by NBBJ, the $650 million facility provides 128 dedicated beds for complex oncology treatment led by Knight Cancer Institute experts. Four floors are now operational, and future plans will add 56 inpatient beds as well as an entire floor for interventional radiology and imaging.
The Arkansas Department of Public Safety (DPS) is constructing a $200 million replacement facility for the state crime laboratory in North Little Rock. Driving scientific innovation and expanding capacity for the justice system, the 190,000-sf building will support advanced forensic disciplines including DNA analysis, toxicology, digital forensics, firearms examination, and other critical services.
The University of Texas at San Antonio opened San Pedro II in April of 2026 in the city’s downtown technology corridor to fuel innovation, education, and research. Designed by Gensler and OVERLAND Partners, the $131 million facility features flexible and reconfigurable spaces for the College of AI, Cyber and Computing, including classrooms, teaching labs, and meeting areas.
The University of New Mexico is engaged in a visionary renovation of the College of Pharmacy on the institution’s North Campus in Albuquerque. Designed by Vigil & Associates and Architekton, the 96,518-sf facility is undergoing a comprehensive transformation to create a sophisticated home for future pharmacists and pharmaceutical scientists. Flexible, leading-edge classrooms and research laboratories will be accompanied by collaboration venues that bring learners, faculty, and community partners together.
Every new building is a gamble on the future, but some are bigger bets than others. These days, one of the highest-stakes wagers campus planners must make is how much to upgrade their high-performance facilities to meet tomorrow’s demand. It isn’t an easy call. Once relegated to distant basements, computer labs are now being built right in the heart of campus, a reflection of their ever-growing importance. With the number of majors that utilize high-performance computing expected to rise nationally by the end of the decade and the growing importance of cutting-edge supercomputers in recruiting the very best scholars, the overall direction is clear. But a lot can go wrong, which makes planning tomorrow’s high- performance computing facilities today very complicated and potentially risky.
