Just a few years ago, most Americans had barely heard the term “artificial intelligence.” Today, it is already changing daily life. An AI model can spot the signs of pancreatic cancer up to three years earlier than conventional methods. An AI sepsis-alert system cleared by the Food and Drug Administration is cutting hospital deaths by nearly one-fifth. Banks are using AI to stop fraud before it drains a family’s savings, and cities like Phoenix are testing AI-run traffic signals that are already shortening commute times at some of their worst intersections.

None of it happens without data centers, and data centers are not built by one type of company. It takes the investors financing the projects, the utilities and power producers keeping the grid reliable as demand climbs, and the hyperscalers running the models, plus many more layers of different types of companies in between, all working together with local communities. Building data centers across the United States is how America wins the global AI race against China.