Joe Biden used to showcase investments in microprocessors and the green transition. Donald Trump is now doing the same with artificial intelligence (AI). The day after his inauguration, the new American president announced, in a live statement from the White House on Tuesday, January 21, a considerable AI investment called “Stargate.” One hundred billion dollars, set to be spent immediately and increased to $500 billion over the next four years, will go toward building the infrastructure to power the next generation of AI technology advancements – essentially, huge data centers and the energy system needed to power them.
The project has been championed by OpenAI, the firm that launched ChatGPT at the end of 2022; Japanese investment company SoftBank; and digital giant Oracle. Their heads were present at the White House: Sam Altman (OpenAI), Masayoshi Son (SoftBank) and Larry Ellison, founder of Oracle and fourth-highest net-worth American individual.
“This monumental undertaking is a resounding declaration of confidence in America’s potential under a new president,” Trump boasted. The ceremony was intended to demonstrate the Republican leader’s ability, after Biden, to attract foreign investment. SoftBank’s boss had already pledged $100 billion in investment over four years during a December 2024 visit to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. “Last month I came to celebrate your [victory]and promised you we will invest $100 billion, and you told me ‘Oh Masa, go for 200’! Now, I came back with $500 [billion]because (…) this is the, as you say, the beginning of [a] Golden Age in America,” said Son.
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