AI billionaire-backed group launches pro-data center ad blitz

An advocacy group backed by artificial intelligence industry billionaires is launching a multimillion-dollar ad campaign in election battleground states to try to counter a mounting public backlash against a data center construction wave crucial to the industry’s growth plans.

The ad campaign will initially focus on Kansas, Ohio and Wisconsin, where public concerns about data centers have consumed statewide elections, according to a statement Monday from Build American AI, an advocacy group backed by pro-AI super political action committee Leading the Future.

Voters have soured on AI data center construction amid rising public concerns about their impact on the cost of electricity, power outages and water usage. The struggle has become a defining issue in midterm congressional elections.

In August, 61% of US adults said they oppose the construction of new data centers in their area — up 12 percentage points from a February and March poll, according to surveys conducted by the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania. The backlash is a rare bipartisan issue: 75% of Democrats and 63% of Republicans said they don’t want a data center built in their area, according to a June survey by Reuters/Ipsos.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee earlier this month warned top AI companies that data center support is becoming toxic for politicians. In the memo, the NRSC warned that Ohio Democratic Senate candidate Sherrod Brown is making data center opposition a “centerpiece” of his messaging against Republican Sen. Jon Husted. If Husted loses as a result, “the industry will be blamed,” the memo warned.

The pro-AI advocacy group, in its statement announcing the ad campaign, portrayed data centers as an engine of economic growth.

“The stakes are too high to allow the loudest and most extreme voices to dictate America’s future,” Build American AI said in the statement. “Driving responsible investment away will cost Americans good-paying jobs, weaken communities and undermine America’s ability to lead.”

The group described the budget for the ad campaign as in the millions of dollars but didn’t provide further details on its spending plans.

Venture capitalists Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz as well as OpenAI President Greg Brockman are among the funders of the super PAC backing the group.