TechBytes

Across 6,933 terrestrial BEAD projects, ACLP identified 86,402 distinct permits needed before construction can begin — more than half of projects need more than 10 permits, one in seven requires more than 20.

Data centers are terrific assets to a community or region. But this pace of construction won’t last forever. Eventually the buildout will crest, capital will become more selective, technology will become more efficient, and the gold rush will dwindle. And if you missed out, you missed out, and you’ll probably regret it.

Data centers pay for their electricity. They pay for their water. And AI should pay for its content inputs, too.

Auction revenue matters, but it should not be the final determinant of spectrum policy. If policymakers want the connected economy to keep working for consumers, homes, businesses and innovators, they must continue making the world safe for Wi-Fi.

Between June 2024 and June 2025, there were 15,540 reported theft and vandalism incidents targeting America's communications networks, disrupting service for more than 9.5 million customers. Nearly 9,800 occurred in the first half of 2025 alone, double the previous six months. This is an accelerating crime wave.

Licensed spectrum remains important to American AI leadership. But importance is not exclusivity, and proximity to AI is not necessity. Policymakers allocating scarce spectrum resources should ground decisions in data: where AI traffic flows, which connectivity models markets are building and what consumers and businesses need.

A new study documents more than $39 million in foreign funding—from billionaires and foundations in Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Denmark—flowing into a coordinated network of activist groups working to block U.S. data center construction.

It’s likely that implementation of AI could eliminate most accidents due to human error. Chips and software don’t get tired, don’t get distracted, and make decisions in millionths of a second that a human might take 5 or 10 seconds to make. Studies suggest that humans can keep track of 3 to 5 independent variables at the same time, while AI can manage orders of magnitude more.

Let's be clear about what a data center is: critical infrastructure. It's the physical home of the digital services we rely on. If policymakers are serious about economic competitiveness, they should treat data centers the way they treat all critical infrastructure.

It makes no sense for there to be 51 different regulatory regimes for a business that travels across state borders at the speed of light.