U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Friday establishing a “National Energy Dominance Council,” tasked with ensuring the country has enough electricity to compete with China in the artificial intelligence race.
“We’re going to be energy dominant like nobody else,” Trump said while signing the order. “And this doesn’t even include all the electricity we’re going to be producing for AI plants. They need at least double the electricity we have right now.”
Trump’s Secretary of the Interior, Doug Burgum, echoed the urgency of the initiative. “The U.S. is in an AI arms race with China. The only way we win is with more electricity,” he said.
According to the White House, the new council will coordinate energy policy across federal agencies and streamline permitting, production, and distribution of energy resources.
The move aligns with Trump’s long-standing commitment to expanding domestic oil and gas production under his “drill, baby, drill” approach. It also marks a sharp departure from the Biden administration’s climate policies, removing barriers to fossil fuel expansion in favor of energy security.
The initiative also aims to offset potential cost increases from Trump’s trade policies, which could lead to tariffs on energy imports and exports.
The AI industry’s demand for electricity is soaring, with data centers already straining the country’s aging power grid. Chronic underinvestment in infrastructure, coupled with the decommissioning of nuclear plants, has left the U.S. struggling to meet growing energy needs.
Tech executives have been pressing the Trump administration to prioritize power generation to support AI development. By 2028, officials estimate that AI training could require as much as five gigawatts of electricity—enough to power approximately five million homes.