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Opponents of artificial intelligence expansion in the United States are inadvertently serving Beijing’s strategic interests, according to recent investigations and congressional concerns. The progressive movement’s resistance to data center construction aligns with China’s efforts to impede American technological dominance during what retired Lt. Col. Robert Maginnis describes as the “new AI Cold War with China.”
A 2023 New York Times investigation identified Neville Roy Singham, an American Marxist based in Shanghai, as a key financier of leftist American organizations opposing data center development. Singham has directed at least $275 million to nonprofits including Code Pink, The People’s Forum, BreakThrough News, the Justice and Education Fund, and Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research, according to the Times report.
The Bitcoin Policy Institute documented that the Party for Socialism and Liberation, a Marxist-Leninist organization with roots in Singham’s network, has effectively delayed or blocked approximately $24 billion in proposed AI infrastructure investment. Congressional leaders and investigators contend that Singham’s nonprofit ecosystem advances Chinese government objectives by amplifying anti-data center campaigns across multiple states.
In June, the House Energy and Commerce Committee demanded the White House and FBI investigate alleged foreign interference in blocking American data center projects. The Manhattan Institute’s Stu Smith characterized the opposition as “an ecosystem of overlapping organizations, causes, and front-facing projects that all reinforce each other locally.”
Technology companies have begun countering anti-data center messaging by highlighting local economic benefits. A Meta facility in Richland Parish, Louisiana generated sales tax revenue enabling teacher bonuses of nearly $51,000, while 250 data centers in Loudon County, Virginia are projected to provide $1.3 billion in annual taxes—approximately 40 percent of the county’s 2027 total tax revenue.
Some states are addressing community concerns through legislation requiring hyperscalers to provide their own electricity and limit water consumption for cooling systems. Industry advocates argue AI development is critical given demographic challenges including retiring Baby Boomers and declining immigration, which are shrinking the American workforce.
Senator John Fetterman stated that “AI supremacy and energy dominance underpins our national security,” reflecting growing bipartisan recognition of the technology’s importance despite political divisions over data center expansion in upcoming midterm elections.
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