Trump Says US Must Build Data Centers or Lose Them to Other Countries

The United States could lose the data centers necessary for artificial intelligence and miss out on the “fortune” that comes along with them if Americans aren’t smart, President Donald Trump said Tuesday.

Trump said data centers are being built in Finland, and America risks losing out on the economic fortune they will bring.

“Frankly, I want them built in America,” Trump told reporters. “There’s some that will be built in right now Finland, other places. … If we’re not smart, they’ll end up building data centers in other countries, and those other countries will make a fortune, and we won’t.”

Trump spoke with reporters at the White House after meeting with representatives of top technology companies who signed an accord committing to strengthen oversight of advanced artificial intelligence systems.

Trump said he believes data centers will boost local economies and translate into benefits such as higher teacher pay.

“The companies will be very generous with them, both financially and otherwise,” Trump said of communities across America. “I think they’ll help with their schools, they’ll help with their teachers. … They’re going to be forming partnerships with communities when they open up data centers.”

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s press office responded to a video of Trump calling some data centers “absolutely beautiful.” In that video, Trump also blamed Democrats for demonizing data centers.

Hochul’s office posted four pictures of large industrial buildings on X that it said were data centers.

“These are the data centers Donald Trump wants you to think are beautiful,” Hochul’s press office stated.

U.S. Rep. Glenn Ivey (D-Md.) posted on X that AI companies, not residents, should cover their costs—a position that aligns with Trump’s Ratepayer Protection Pledge from March.

“But innovation can’t come at the expense of Maryland families,” Ivey said on X. “As AI and data centers expand, companies should cover their own costs instead of passing higher electricity bills onto residents. We can lead in innovation without leaving Marylanders with the bill.”

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Sept. 21 ordered the state’s environmental agency to halt permits for data center projects until reviews of their electricity and water use are completed.

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas and Texas Water Development Board are conducting audits amid concerns about future grid reliability and water supplies.

Abbott said the state had received requests totaling 474 gigawatts of new electricity demand, roughly five times the state’s record peak load. About 90 percent of those requests are from data centers, which he said must pay their own way.

Trump has been a supporter of artificial intelligence and the data centers necessary to support them.

“Whoever wins AI—whoever wins super intelligence—wins,” Trump said in a Sept. 22 address to the U.N. General Assembly. “I’m not going to stifle growth of something that will be bigger than the Industrial Revolution.”