Biden signs executive order to speed up US infrastructure development with AI technology

On Tuesday, President Biden signed an ambitious executive order aimed at balancing national security and climate change concerns while expediting the development of massive AI infrastructure in the US.

Biden announced an executive order aimed at accelerating the development of the next generation of AI infrastructure in the US. The order directs the Department of Defense and the Department of Energy to lease federal sites for private sector construction of frontier AI infrastructure. Biden emphasized the importance of responsible use of AI for national security and improving American lives, while also ensuring that the US remains a leader in the technology that will define the future. He also highlighted the need to protect critical environmental standards and shared efforts to protect clean air and water.

Ensuring the construction of AI infrastructure in the United States is a matter of national security," Biden stated. "As AI technology advances, it poses increasing risks to American safety and security. By establishing domestic data centers for training and operating AI models, the United States can securely develop and utilize AI for national security purposes, while preventing adversaries from gaining access to powerful systems that could harm our military and national security.

He added that it would aid in preventing America from becoming overly reliant on other nations for access to potent AI technology.

Vice President Harris stated on Tuesday that the significant electrical power needs of large-scale AI operations present a new opportunity for advancing American leadership in clean-energy technology, which will power our future economy. She added that by activating the full force of the federal government to speed up and scale AI operations in the United States, we are securing our global leadership on AI, which will have a profound impact on our economy, society, and national security for generations to come.

The Defense and Energy departments will identify at least three federal sites for private companies to build AI data centers through competitive solicitations, according to senior administration officials.

Officials stated that developers constructing on those sites will be obligated to pay for the construction of facilities and provide enough "clean power" to meet the full capacity requirements of their data centers. The U.S. government will lease land to a company, but the company will own the materials it produces there.

The government has announced that developers chosen to construct AI infrastructure on government websites will be responsible for covering all associated costs, including building and operating expenses, to prevent the increase of electricity prices for consumers.

Government officials have stated that some of the AI data centers to be constructed on federal sites will be reserved for small and medium-sized companies, in addition to the orders directing their construction with public labor agreements.

The Energy Department will assist state public utility commissions in designing electricity tariffs to support connecting new large customers with clean energy, while government agencies will study the effects of AI data centers on electricity prices.

The Interior Department will identify suitable lands for clean energy development and data centers on government sites, according to administration officials.

"According to Tarun Chhabra, the computing power and electricity required to train and operate advanced AI models are rapidly increasing and are expected to continue to do so. By 2028, leading AI developers anticipate needing data centers with a capacity of up to five gigawatts for training their models."

To effectively deploy AI systems at scale, it is necessary to have a wider network of data centers located in various regions of the country, according to him.

The Biden administration has issued an executive order on artificial intelligence chips, which follows the proposed new restrictions on exports of the technology. The final rule on AI diffusion was announced Monday, but it has received criticism from chip industry executives and officials from the European Union due to export restrictions that would affect 120 countries.

"National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan stated at the White House Monday that the United States is striving to maintain its lead in AI while allowing other countries to benefit from the technology and acquire the necessary hardware. He believes this approach is in the best interest of preserving and protecting America's lead in AI, in a bipartisan manner."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.