Winning the AI Race Requires a Foundation of Cement and Concrete

You've heard it before: You can't put the cart before the horse. The same goes for AI and concrete-made with cement. The U.S. can only be the global leader in AI with resilient concrete data centers to house and protect AI technology. It's that simple.

President Trump knows this, and ACA greatly appreciates that he mentioned the need for "plenty of cement and concrete" as he announced the administration's "Winning the Race, America's AI Action Plan" in July 2025.

Concrete is the optimal material for data centers because it is fire-resistant, offers thermal stability, provides unrivaled physical security, and has long-term structural integrity.

Its essentialness in nationwide efforts is often overlooked, mainly because it is consistently reliable and issue-free - constituting roads, bridges, buildings, dams and other infrastructure Americans use and depend on every single day.

The objectives of the "Winning the Race, America's AI Action Plan" include:

• Emphasizing AI's role in national security and global competitiveness
• Prioritizing permitting reform and public-private partnerships
• Outlining training and workforce adaptation strategies for the age of digital labor
• Addressing massive power demand growth for data centers

President Trump also signed a package of executive actions aimed at boosting energy supply to power the U.S. expansion of AI. Actions under consideration include:

1. • Streamlining permitting by creating a nationwide Clean Water Act permit for data centers, which would replace the need for companies to seek permits on a state-by-state basis.
   • Building and connecting new power generation to the grid by allowing for the prioritization for grid connections of "shovel-ready" power-generating projects; and
   • The use of federal lands, including those managed by the Departments of Defense and Interior, for rapid deployment of AI-supporting assets and improving siting of data centers

We appreciate that the President recognizes that none of these AI goals happens without the proper infrastructure, built with cement and concrete, and America's cement manufacturers look forward to providing the resilient materials needed to ensure the nation's leadership in the AI race.