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Bessent Says U.S. AI Firms Failed to Explain Data-Center Benefits Amid Cost-of-Living Fears

September 2, 2026 at 15:51 EDT

Policy & Regulation
Infra & Chips

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said companies racing to expand artificial intelligence have done a poor job of explaining themselves to the public, faulting hyperscalers and AI labs for weak community ties as data-center buildouts fuel concern about higher living costs.

September 2, 2026 · U.S. Treasury

AI firms failed the local pitch

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says hyperscalers and AI labs have done a terrible job explaining data-center benefits while communities worry about living costs.

AI computing investment as share of U.S. GDP

0.7%

A year earlier

1.4%

Q1 2026

Investment roughly doubled as a share of GDP — twice the height, twice the load on local grids.

Compute share

60% → 80%

Bessent: U.S. global compute by 2028

Startup teams

15–20 → 1–3

Staff he says AI now replaces at launch

Payoff clock

~6 months

When he guesses CapEx turns disinflationary

What he wants explained

Use cases · national security · quality of life. Gains must not accrue only to a small group. Construction unions have backed projects; 100% expensing is meant to keep them in the U.S.

What communities cite

Power bills, water, noise, and land. Local moratoria in Western North Carolina and about 100 U.S. jurisdictions. Senators cite electricity jumps as high as 267% near some sites; Virginia research found one permanent job per $54 million invested.

The reset he demanded

Industry and government must show how AI helps ordinary Americans — or the CapEx race will keep colliding with cost-of-living politics.

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