The global race for artificial intelligence is usually described as a competition over algorithms, talent, and advanced semiconductor chips. Yet the future of AI may ultimately depend on something less glamorous but far more fundamental: the ability to build the physical infrastructure that powers the digital age.

Across the United States, growing opposition to new data centres is emerging as an unexpected challenge to America’s AI ambitions. What appears to be a local dispute over electricity, water consumption, land use, and environmental concerns could evolve into a strategic issue with global consequences. As the world enters an era increasingly defined by artificial intelligence, the struggle over data centres is becoming a struggle over power itself.

Data centres have become the factories of the digital economy. They store information, train AI models, support cloud computing, and provide the computational capacity required for advanced technologies. Every major AI breakthrough depends on vast networks of servers operating around the clock.

The scale of investment reflects the stakes involved. The world’s largest technology companies are spending unprecedented amounts on AI infrastructure. Hundreds of billions of dollars are being committed to new data centres, advanced chips, cooling systems, and power networks. Analysts expect trillions of dollars to be invested globally in AI infrastructure during the coming decade.

These figures reveal an important reality. Data centres are no longer ordinary commercial projects. They are becoming strategic assets, much as railways, ports, power plants, and oil infrastructure were during previous eras of economic transformation. The countries that possess the greatest computing capacity will enjoy significant advantages in economic productivity, scientific research, military........

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