Kevin O'Leary Sounds Alarm on America's AI Infrastructure Crisis
Canadian billionaire investor Kevin O'Leary has issued a stark warning about America's capacity to maintain its artificial intelligence leadership. He bluntly states that the United States lacks the physical infrastructure necessary to power the very technology it created.
The Power Grid Problem
In a recent social media post, O'Leary highlighted a critical weakness. While AI tools have driven remarkable productivity gains across all eleven sectors of the S&P 500 for the past two years, the U.S. energy grid has remained dangerously stagnant.
"Here's our problem... We have no power," O'Leary declared. He drew a sharp contrast with China's aggressive infrastructure push. Beijing has reportedly added a massive 500 gigawatts of power capacity in the last 24 months. Meanwhile, the United States has built "zero."
O'Leary emphasized that without massive and immediate upgrades to its energy infrastructure, the U.S. cannot hope to support the next generation of energy-hungry AI data centers. The hardware and the wattage, he argues, are just as crucial as the software.
Broader Economic Concerns
Beyond the power grid, O'Leary criticized current U.S. economic policy. He expressed skepticism about near-term interest rate relief while Jerome Powell chairs the Federal Reserve.
"I'm not as optimistic that jawboning the Fed is going to get rates reduced anytime soon," he stated. "I don't think you can count on rate cuts while Powell's there."
He also identified tariffs as a direct driver of inflation. "Tariffs themselves on commodities or goods that you don't create yourself is inflationary. There's no way around it," O'Leary argued. He suggested removing these tariffs to help reduce costs and address affordability issues for consumers.
AI's Current Success and Future Risk
O'Leary fully acknowledges the transformative impact of AI on the economy. He credits AI-driven productivity for the S&P 500 consistently reaching new highs. The effectiveness of these tools, now being utilized across diverse industries, is undeniable.
However, his enthusiasm is tempered by a fundamental concern. The very engine of this growth—the AI software—requires immense physical power to run. America's failure to expand its energy grid, especially compared to China's rapid build-out, poses a severe long-term risk to its technological and economic dominance.
The warning is clear: software innovation alone cannot secure America's AI future. It must be backed by a modern, robust, and expanding energy infrastructure.
