Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become an indispensable tool in our global economic system. From transportation and cybersecurity to healthcare and finance, America’s economic and technological competitiveness now depends on how efficiently companies can build AI capacity through data centers. Technology companies like Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, OpenAI, and others are racing to build the computing power for American AI dominance.
However, the primary constraint on how much AI we can build is how much AI we can power.
The Department of Energy predicts that power demand from data centers could triple by 2028, creating unique challenges for America’s electric grid. The data centers sprouting up across the country need an electricity source that is reliable, consistent, easy to build, quick to market, and low-cost.
Here, solar + storage is the obvious choice. Solar is the most affordable electricity generating source in America. It is easily scalable and distributable to any location. It is, by far, the quickest to build and it has more projects already in development than every other power source combined.
This is why tech giants are adding solar + storage in droves. Seven of the top 10 corporate solar buyers are tech and data companies. These organizations recognize that cost and speed to market are the two most important factors in the AI race, and that no other generation source can match solar + storage on these criteria. Solar and storage projects are ready now and will keep our grid reliable, our energy bills low, and our innovative engine running.
OpenAI
In January, President Trump and OpenAI announced a $100 billion venture, called Stargate, to develop a data center infrastructure in the United States. The strategic partnership between OpenAI, Oracle, and SoftBank Group will rely on massive solar + storage projects built by the SoftBank-backed company, SB Energy.
Microsoft
Microsoft is tapping into solar power to satisfy its data center energy demand in dozens of locations around the U.S. In February alone, they contracted 389 megawatts (MW) from three separate solar instillations in Illinois and Texas. In March, Microsoft added additional solar generation facilities Illinois, Michigan, and Missouri in partnership with developer by AES. These projects will add 475 MW of capacity, adding to Microsoft’s already-considerable 34-gigawatt (GW) solar portfolio.
Meta
Meta operates one of the largest corporate clean energy portfolios in the world. Just this year, the tech giant has dramatically expanded its solar portfolio in Texas. Meta has inked a 200 MW solar deal with Engie, a 505 MW solar project with Cypress Creek Renewables, and another 200 MW solar deal with RWE — all three located in the Lone Star State.
Amazon
Amazon maintains the largest pipeline of new solar projects of any company in the United States, with 13.6 GW of solar currently under development. To put that in perspective, only three states (CA, TX, and FL) have more than 13 GW of total solar capacity in operation. Amazon is also heavily investing in Texas with more than 20 projects in the state, including a 500 MW solar farm in Webb County, Texas.
Google is making investments across clean energy sources, especially in energy storage. Google has an industry-leading 312 MW of storage capacity in operation. To power their data centers, Google has entered into a $20 billion partnership Intersect Power to develop co-located energy parks where data centers will share land with clean energy generation and storage.
Innovation put the United States at the forefront of the information age. Now, as new tools change the race for technological dominance, America must invest in affordable, reliable, homegrown energy sources — like solar and energy storage — to power our advanced computing capacity and lead the technologies of the future.
There is no American AI dominance without American energy dominance.
