Trump Links Opposition to US Data Centers to China

US President Donald Trump suggested that China may be involved in opposition to data centers in American communities, including one in Sterling, Virginia. During an interview with Fox News, Trump stated that 'a significant portion' of the opposition could be linked to China.

The South China Morning Post reported that residents in Sterling rejected the idea that their opposition was due to Chinese influence and instead cited concerns about noise, emissions, and other consequences of the facilities' operations. The community is located near Data Centre Alley, which has the highest number of data centers per capita in the world.

The Bitcoin Policy Institute claimed that China is attempting to slow down the development of data centers in the US by funding climate nonprofit organizations and protests. OpenAI also reported blocking two clusters of ChatGPT accounts that originated from China and spread claims that data centers raise electricity prices for US families, but found no evidence of their influence on public opinion.

Vantage, the company behind the VA2 data center in Sterling, initially stated that it would be powered by the local electricity grid. However, after receiving final approval in March 2023, the company learned that a quick connection was not available and added gas turbines to the plan as an alternative energy source.