In this photo illustration, the OpenAI logo is displayed on a mobile phone screen, along with a photo of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.
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OpenAI’s official “U.S. Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Blueprint” involves artificial intelligence economic zones, government projects that leverage the U.S. Navy’s nuclear power experience and private investor funding, according to a document seen by CNBC, which the company plans to unveil Wednesday in Washington, D.C. document
The blueprint also outlines a North American artificial intelligence alliance to compete with Chinese initiatives, as well as a National Transmission Highway Act that is “as ambitious as the National Interstate and Defense Highway Act of 1956.”
In the document, OpenAI outlines a promising future for artificial intelligence, calling it “a foundational technology like electricity and promising similar decentralized access and benefits.” Investments in U.S. artificial intelligence will lead to tens of thousands of jobs, GDP growth, a modernized electric grid including nuclear power, a new set of chip manufacturing facilities and billions of dollars in investment from global funds, the company wrote.
Now that Donald Trump has been elected president, OpenAI has made clear it plans to work with the new administration on artificial intelligence policy, with the company outlining its plans in a speech Wednesday.
Trump plans to repeal President Biden’s Executive Order on Artificial Intelligenceaccording to his campaign platformnoting that it “hinders AI innovation and imposes radical left-wing ideas on the development of this technology” and that “Republicans support the development of AI rooted in free speech and human flourishing.”
OpenAI’s presentation outlined an Artificial Intelligence Economic Zone created by state and federal governments “to incentivize states to expedite permitting and approval of artificial intelligence infrastructure.” The company envisions building new solar arrays and wind farms and cleaning up unused nuclear reactors for use.
OpenAI writes: “Countries that provide subsidies or other support to companies launching infrastructure projects may require that a portion of new computing resources be made available to their public universities to create AI research labs and developer centers aligned with their key business sectors. .
OpenAI also wrote that it expects to introduce a “National Transmission Highway Act” that could expand electricity, fiber optic connections and natural gas pipeline construction. The company wrote that it needed “new powers and funding to lift barriers to transmission planning, permitting and payments” and that existing programs couldn’t keep up with AI-driven demand.
“Governments can encourage private investors to finance high-cost energy infrastructure projects through committed energy purchases and other credit risk reduction measures,” the blueprint said.
North American Artificial Intelligence Alliance and investments in more U.S. data centers
OpenAI also anticipates that the North American Artificial Intelligence Consortium of Western countries may eventually expand into global networks, such as the GCC “with the UAE and other countries in the region.”
The company also outlined its vision for nuclear power, writing that while China “will build as much nuclear power capacity in 10 years as the United States built in 40 years,” the U.S. Navy operates about 100 small modular reactors (SMRs) to power the Navy. Submarines provide the power, and more small and medium-sized reactors for civilian use can be built using naval expertise.
OpenAI’s infrastructure blueprint is consistent with what OpenAI’s global policy director Chris Lehane told CNBC in a recent interview. He sees the Midwest and Southwest as potential core regions for artificial intelligence investment.
“As we move into the digital age, parts of the country are being ‘left behind,’ and a lot of the economy, especially the economic benefits, are flowing to the two coasts…areas like the Midwest and the Southwest are going to be where, You have the land and the capacity to build wind farms and solar facilities and potentially build nuclear facilities as part of the energy transition,” Lehane said.
Lehane explained that infrastructure development depends on the United States maintaining its lead over China in artificial intelligence.
“Kansas and Iowa have a lot of agricultural data and are considering building a data center,” Lehane said. “One gigawatt, that’s a lot of, you know, take 200-250 megawatts, a quarter of that, and do something with their public university system to create an agriculture-based LL.M. or reasoning model that really works for them of community service, but also making them centers of agricultural artificial intelligence.
Lehane cited an estimate that the United States will need 50 gigawatts of energy by 2030 to support the needs of the artificial intelligence industry and compete with China, especially as the country officially recognized Twenty nuclear reactors have been built in the past two years and 11 more will be built next year.
“We have no choice,” Lehane said. “We really have to compete with that.”
