US Officials Question Foreign Influence in Data Center Opposition
19 reported
A WIRED report examines claims that the Chinese government is funding and influencing opposition to data center development in the US. Right-wing officials and data center investors have made these allegations, and OpenAI released a report describing a cluster of China-origin accounts spreading anti-data-center messages. However, experts interviewed by WIRED expressed skepticism about the funding claims, suggesting any foreign interference is likely amplifying existing local tensions. A poll from climate outlet Heatmap shows more than half of Americans support a moratorium on data center development, while UK-based Public First found US support for data centers was the lowest among 15 countries surveyed. Republican Senator Tom Cotton and House Energy and Commerce Committee leaders have sent letters requesting investigations into foreign influence. Social media analytics firm Graphika stated it has not seen evidence of organized foreign influence operations, with domestic US actors leading the online conversation. The Bitcoin Policy Institute report, cited by investor Kevin O'Leary and House Republicans, alleges nonprofit funding connects anti-data-center efforts to foreign funders including the Chinese Communist Party, but experts on China and AI were skeptical of these claims.
What’s reported
OpenAI released a report describing a cluster of accounts originating in China spreading anti-data-center messages.
A Heatmap poll shows more than half of Americans support a moratorium on data center development.
Public First polling shows US support for data centers was the lowest of 15 countries surveyed.
Republican Senator Tom Cotton sent a letter to acting attorney general Todd Blanche requesting an investigation into foreign influence.
Republican leaders on the House Energy and Commerce Committee sent a letter to the White House and FBI about foreign campaigns targeting data center development.
Interior secretary Doug Burgum told Fox Business that places trying to build data centers are "getting bombarded" with foreign propaganda.
Canadian investor Kevin O'Leary used a graphic from a Bitcoin Policy Institute report claiming foreign influence fueled opposition to his Utah data center.
Graphika analyst Dina Sadek stated the company has "not yet seen evidence of organized or scaled influence operations or campaigns that can be traced back to a foreign actor."
Graphika found some Facebook pages producing anti-data-center AI images with administrators based in Bangladesh, possibly "for monetization purposes."
Sadek said "domestic US actors are leading the online anti-data-center conversation."
OpenAI noted it "found no evidence of meaningful breakout" of the anti-data-center messaging from the accounts it flagged.
The Bitcoin Policy Institute report alleges a tangle of nonprofit funding connects anti-data-center efforts to foreign funders, including the Chinese Communist Party.
The report also says Chinese state media is "openly campaigning against US AI data centers," citing stories about anti-data-center trends and rising energy costs.
Bitcoin Policy Institute head of research Sam Lyman said he started looking into the issue after an April AI safety conversation between Senator Bernie Sanders and four experts, including two from China.
Brookings Institution fellow Kyle Chan said high-level discussions between US and Chinese officials have happened around other global issues like climate change.
Stanford research scholar Graham Webster said the report calls out actions that don't match other documented Chinese influence campaigns.
Both Chan and Webster noted past instances of Chinese actors amplifying other social issues causing unrest in the US.
Lyman acknowledged that local communities "have legitimate questions and concerns" about AI and data center development.
The OpenAI report notes the targeting is significant because it shows "PRC-origin influence operators testing narratives against AI infrastructure."
Key figures
Tom Cotton, Republican senator
Todd Blanche, acting attorney general
Doug Burgum, interior secretary
Kevin O'Leary, Canadian investor
Dina Sadek, analyst at Graphika
Sam Lyman, head of research at the Bitcoin Policy Institute
Kyle Chan, fellow at the Brookings Institution
Graham Webster, research scholar at the Center for International Security and Cooperation at Stanford University
Xue Lan, nonresident fellow at Brookings and speaker at the Sanders event
Bernie Sanders, senator
Sources: Wired
