Texas Senator Ted Cruz said tech companies building data centers should offer direct cash payments or cover local power bills to ease growing community resistance, while warning that foreign adversaries are actively trying to slow American artificial intelligence growth.
Speaking on Bloomberg’s Balance of Power: Evening Edition, the Texas Republican addressed rising pushback against data center construction across the country and within his home state, where leaders including Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton have raised concerns about resource demands.
Cruz argued that while the United States must lead in artificial intelligence, local concerns regarding resources and utility bills are valid.
“I think it is critical that America win the race for AI, but I also think the concerns being raised about data centers are real and reasonable and they need to be addressed head on,” Cruz said.
The senator alleged that foreign interests are fueling part of the public opposition. “It’s worth noting that this anti-data center movement is not entirely organic, that China is putting real money into funding this movement,” Cruz said, pointing to Neville Roy Singham, an American businessman living in China. “From China’s perspective, they want us to never build another data center and basically cede all of AI to them.”
When asked whether Texas leaders were falling for foreign messaging, Cruz pushed back, saying voter apprehension centers on two practical issues: water and electricity.
Cruz noted that newer facilities often use closed-loop cooling systems to cycle the same water repeatedly and keep consumption low, adding that he supports state measures requiring developers to protect community supplies.
On the issue of grid strain and utility expenses, Cruz noted electricity rates have jumped 30 percent since 2021. He backed Abbott’s stance that new facilities should not drive up local power rates, urging companies to take even larger steps to win public support.
“I’m urging the companies that are building these data centers go further than that,” Cruz said. “Send checks to the residents of the community. Send them a hundred bucks a month. Send them 500 bucks a month. Send them a thousand bucks a month. Or even better, say if we build a data center in your community, for the rest of your life, your electricity bill is free.”
Cruz stated that offering tangible benefits directly to neighbors would reshape public reception toward large-scale digital infrastructure.
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