Donald Trump announces $20 billion investment in data centers

President-elect Donald Trump announced a $20 billion foreign investment to establish new data centers across the United States during a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago estate on Tuesday. The investment, pledged by Emirati billionaire Hussain Sajwani, founder of DAMAC Properties, will support the development of technologies related to artificial intelligence and cloud services.

The initial phase of the investment will focus on data centers in Texas, Arizona, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, and Indiana. Sajwani indicated that the election of Trump influenced his decision to make this substantial investment, stating, “It was amazing news for me and my family when [Trump] was elected in November. We’ve been waiting for four years to increase our investment in [the] U.S. to very large amounts of money.”

Trump mentioned that the investment could potentially exceed the pledged amount, stating, “They may go double, or even somewhat more than double, that amount of money.” DAMAC Properties primarily operates as a real estate developer and is now shifting its focus toward building data centers.

What Musk, Bezos and Trump really discussed over Mar-a-Lago dinner?

Trump emphasized that his administration will expedite the environmental and regulatory approval process for companies investing $1 billion or more in the U.S. He described the existing regulatory environment as a “quagmire” for international investors. “If you invest a billion dollars or more, we’re going to move them quickly through the environmental process,” Trump stated.

The announcement follows a trend of significant foreign investment pledges to the U.S. in light of Trump’s electoral victory. Notably, Softbank CEO Masayoshi Son announced plans for a $100 billion investment in the U.S. aimed at creating 100,000 jobs during Trump’s four-year term.

As the AI industry continues to grow rapidly, tech leaders have called for increased investment in data center infrastructure to meet demand. Microsoft has announced plans to invest $80 billion in AI data centers, highlighting the need for robust infrastructure to support advanced technologies.

Featured image credit: Carlos Herrero/Pexels