The White House released a sweeping action plan Wednesday to boost development of artificial intelligence, a move that could influence the build-out of the grid and the electricity mix for decades.
The plan outlines 90 policy actions that dozens of federal agencies should take to cut regulations, help construct data centers and boost the workforce to build out AI infrastructure. It also calls on holding back funding for states that hinder AI development and directs the Department of Commerce to eliminate climate change from its “risk management” AI framework, among other suggestions.
“This plan galvanizes Federal efforts to turbocharge our innovation capacity, build cutting-edge infrastructure, and lead globally, ensuring that American workers and families thrive in the AI era. We are moving with urgency to make this vision a reality,” said White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Michael Kratsios in a statement.
Trump and Energy Secretary Chris Wright have said development of AI is critical to ensure that China does not dominate the technology. The administration is pushing for development of new technologies such as small modular reactors and fusion to be part of the power mix, partly to help support AI.
The White House recommendations range from potential creation of a new permit under the Clean Water Act for data centers and new exclusions under the National Environmental Policy Act for activities related to data centers that “normally do not have a significant effect on the environment.” It directs agencies with “significant land portfolios” to identify sites for data centers and power plants.
Many of the provisions would require further rulemaking or directives from federal agencies to be implemented.
The White House urged the Department of Energy to take actions such as supporting training programs and expediting environmental reviews. The plan also directs the Office of Management and Budget to work with agencies to identify and repeal any regulations that are hindering AI.
“The United States must explore solutions like advanced grid management technologies and upgrades to power lines that can increase the amount of electricity transmitted along existing routes,” the action plan states.
Trump also is expected to sign several executive orders Wednesday to bolster AI and deliver a speech on the technology at a summit sponsored by the Hill and Valley Forum, a group of lawmakers and business leaders.
The action plan comes as large technology companies and utilities are grappling with how to meet surging electricity demand from data centers in the next decade. According to the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, data center electricity demand could triple by 2028.
On Tuesday, the operator of the nation’s largest power grid, PJM Interconnection, announced it would spend a record $16 billion to secure power supplies as data center demand surges.
Large technology companies, meanwhile, have announced massive data center projects in the past month. On Tuesday, for example, Oracle and OpenAI inked a deal to develop 4.5 gigawatts of data center capacity as part of the “Stargate” project backed by Trump. That project announced earlier this year it intended to spend $500 billion over four years to build data centers, although The Wall Street Journal reported this week the initiative is lagging behind schedule.
Critics of Trump’s AI approach say cutbacks to renewable energy incentives, including through the megalaw signed July 4, will restrain the ability to build out data centers, cut jobs and worsen air pollution. Solar power currently is the fastest growing power source in the U.S.
The plan ”will put public safety in the back seat and green-light the rapid deployment of AI products with no clear safeguards,” said Lisa Gilbert, co-president of Public Citizen, during a call with reporters ahead of the announcement. It is a “fossil fuel subsidy in disguise.”
Earlier this year, Wright unveiled plans for the companies to potentially build data centers at 16 federal sites, including the national labs.
