Trump’s own party could be getting in the way of his AI goals, with a GOP-led bill in Texas potentially putting up a lot of red tape that could slow down progress on the president’s plans.
Since taking office earlier this year, President Trump has been adamant about allowing AI technology to evolve as fast as necessary, without the threat of regulations getting in the way.
Now it seems like the Texas GOP is going to do just that, with a new bill set to increase the approval time for the project by months or even years.
Texas Bill Could Slow Down AI Data Center Production
President Trump’s AI plan — dubbed Stargate — aims to build a bunch of heavy-duty data centers that will position the US to compete with China when it comes to developing the technology.
The data centers were scheduled to go up in Texas, with the state housing enough existing infrastructure to handle the load. However, Texas Republicans have introduced and will likely pass a new bill — Senate Bill 6 — that could add six months of regulatory review to the already-lengthy process for approval.
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Trump loyalists are obviously not happy, criticizing the new bill as nothing more than red tape that will slow us down and eventually lead to China winning the AI race.
“These heavy-handed mandates risk stifling investment on exactly the infrastructure needed for Trump’s AI initiative.” – Vance Ginn, former chief economist at the White House Office of Management and Budget
Why Are Texas Republicans Trying to Slow Down AI Development?
Over the last few years, the Texas power grid has been a problem for the southern state, with sensitivity to cold causing massive blackouts for residents.
This is the primary reason for the new bill. Texas Republicans are concerned that the additional power needs could cause problems for Texans, either in the form of blackouts or increased energy costs for individuals and small businesses.
“These industries understand they will have to supply their own power needs and are diligently working toward that goal so costs are not disproportionally shifted onto residential and small business customers.” – Dan Patrick, Texas lieutenant governor
Even worse, Texas is essentially the only state in the US that could handle this kind of investment, with states like Wisconsin and Wyoming initially vying for the project but eventually realizing that they were simply not set up to handle the energy commitments.
AI & Regulation
Winning the AI race is obviously important, but it really shouldn’t come at the cost of proper regulation and oversight. After all, we’re talking about the most advanced technology in the world with goals of vast job replacement, so a bit of due diligence is probably a good idea.
In fact, the far reaching implications of the evolution of AI are nothing if not substantial. The environmental impacts alone, for example, have been enough for major companies to roll back their carbon neutral promises, with the technology set to quadruple energy needs by 2030.
