The United States, Argentina, and Seizing the Moment for American AI

Commentary by Dan Korn and Juan Cruz

Published September 9, 2025

The United States stands at a technological crossroads. As AI reshapes the global balance of power, the question is no longer whether AI will define the next era of geopolitical competition. It already does. The real question is whether the United States will lead this transformation or cede the initiative to authoritarian rivals. In this context, Argentina's realignment under President Javier Milei is not a regional curiosity. It is a strategic opportunity. And like all such opportunities, it must be seized with clarity, speed, and purpose.

The Trump administration's executive order on "Removing Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence" is not merely a domestic policy initiative. It is a declaration of geopolitical intent. It affirms that AI is not just a tool of innovation but a pillar of national competitiveness and security.

Microsoft's response to this directive underscores the private sector's indispensable role in this national project. In his article, "The Golden Opportunity for American AI," Microsoft's Vice-Chair and President Brad Smith points to "exporting American AI to our allies and friends" as one of the key pillars in his vision for U.S. technology success and economic competitiveness during the next four years.

To win the AI race, the United States must act swiftly to export its technological architecture to allied nations. Argentina is well-positioned to host the next generation of AI infrastructure and fuel the rapid expansion of U.S. AI.

Argentina's digital culture is not nascent. It is mature, resilient, and ambitious. From early adoption of the internet, producing half of all Spanish-language websites in the year 2000, to nurturing 11 unicorns to date, to joining the Hiroshima AI Process Friends Group led by the G7, Argentina has proven a capacity for innovation and partnership that belies its economic volatility.

The Trump administration has affirmed U.S. support for President Milei's economic reform agenda, including through an April 2025 visit by U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, notably his first overseas trip since taking office. This represents an opportunity for the accelerated export of U.S. AI and to deny Chinese technology diffusion in a critical market in the Western Hemisphere. Promoting U.S. AI as a system rooted in democratic values, privacy, and open innovation is not only a strategic necessity but a reaffirmation of the principles that distinguish free societies from authoritarian ones.

In the emerging global order, where data centers are becoming the new engines of economic power, Argentina can do more than take part. With an internet penetration rate nearing 90 percent, Argentina has already laid the groundwork for a connected society.

Most importantly, Argentina brings a legacy of civilian nuclear innovation that dates back to the 1950s, a legacy that has earned Argentina global recognition and credibility. Today, that legacy is being revived through the development of home-grown small modular reactors (SMRs), designed not only to meet domestic energy needs but to help power the next generation of AI infrastructure. By aligning its energy policy to meet AI energy demands with carbon-free power, Argentina is positioning itself as a foundational node in the architecture of U.S. AI diffusion. This is not a passive alignment. It is a deliberate act of statecraft.

The Milei administration has promised a "resurgence of all nuclear technology" as a key component of carbon-free energy contributions to AI. In December 2024, President Milei and Chief Advisor to the President Demian Reidel stood next to fellow Argentinian and Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency Rafael Mariano Grossi to launch Argentina's new nuclear plan. A key component of Argentina's nuclear plan is to develop a 300 megawatt SMR designed in Argentina.

President Trump has also heralded a renewed focus on the civilian use of nuclear energy. Standing next to President Trump during the signing of a series of executive orders on nuclear energy, Constellation Energy Corporation's CEO Joseph Dominguez stated,

"Powering industries critical to our nation's global economic and technological competitiveness, including data centers, requires an abundance of energy that is carbon-free and reliable every hour of every day, and nuclear plants are the only energy sources that can consistently deliver on that promise." The four executive orders signed by President Trump are aimed at accelerating the development of commercial nuclear technologies, including SMRs and next-generation nuclear plants.

Yet, while Argentina courts technological relevance, it does so under the long shadow of a decade of deepening entanglement with the People's Republic of China. After joining China's Belt and Road Initiative in 2022, Argentina has been increasingly dependent on Beijing for liquidity, relying on a $18 billion currency swap that supports its foreign reserves. On trade, China remains Argentina's second largest trading partner after Brazil (the United States is currently fourth after Brazil, China, and the European Union). In addition, the previous government's acquiescence to a Chinese-operated Deep Space Radar Facility in Neuquén, nominally civilian but opaque in function, illustrates the strategic concessions made under the guise of economic necessity.

The current administration, under President Milei, has signaled a new direction. It looks not merely to rebalance trade or diversify investment, but to reassert Argentina's alignment with Western democracies.

In particular, the Milei administration has redirected Argentine foreign policy towards the United States and actively looked to create opportunities for the U.S. tech sector. In one of his first trips after taking office, President Milei traveled to Silicon Valley to meet with some of the most recognized leaders of U.S. technology companies.

The Signals Are Unmistakable

President Milei has embraced a deregulatory agenda that aligns with U.S. values of free enterprise and technological openness. His administration's commitment to transforming Argentina into an AI hub is not only bold. It is strategically aligned with U.S. interests.

In appointing a tech entrepreneur, Alec Oxenford, founder of two Argentine unicorns, as ambassador to Washington, coupled with a fiscal stabilization plan aimed at restoring economic credibility plus a light-touch regulatory posture on AI, the Milei administration reflects a government intent on aligning with the United States not out of sentiment, but strategy. It is a partnership grounded in the mutual recognition that prosperity in the age of AI demands shared values, interoperable regulation, and a common vision of open markets and technological innovation.

For Argentina, forging a structured partnership with the United States on AI could offer more than just technical cooperation. It could open the door to U.S. investment in infrastructure, advance digital skills across the population, and mark a decisive move to ensuring that it is U.S. AI, not Chinese, that sets the standard across Latin America. It could also commit Argentina to supporting U.S. positions in global AI governance forums and ensuring that the rules of the road reflect democratic values, not authoritarian control.

In particular, treating AI as a strategic system across Argentina's economic sectors can accelerate Argentina's national growth and provide a model for the region. AI adoption and its supporting investments in rural broadband and energy access, plus digital skilling, hold the potential to deliver innovative business models that reach the underserved and reduce poverty in many countries in Latin America. In this, Argentina has the opportunity not only to leapfrog outdated development paradigms but to assert a leadership role in shaping a future grounded in the adoption of U.S. AI.

Argentina can seize the moment to move quickly and decisively. It can begin by strengthening the business case for U.S. AI investment in the country by considering the following deliverables:

1. Invest in broad government adoption of cloud computing and AI; Introduce stimulus for small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) to adopt cloud computing and AI.
2. Accelerate access to public data sets to lift the barrier to entry to SMBs' AI innovation and development.
3. Promote massive digital reskilling and build an AI-ready workforce. Argentina can partner with companies like Microsoft to offer programs that range from AI literacy courses for the general public to specialized, sector-specific training and targeted training for SMBs.
4. Drive public-private initiatives to localize large language models with Argentine linguistic and cultural data.
5. Promote government-backed start-up accelerator programs to provide SMBs with the AI development tools, mentorship, and access to international marketplaces they require to succeed.
6. Promote the creation of the "AI Engineering" major at public national Argentine universities as key hubs for applying AI innovations across every sector in the economy.

In the AI era, passivity is peril. Ensuring U.S. AI adoption across borders will not happen by default. The diffusion of U.S. AI must be designed, deployed, and vigorously defended. Argentina should seize the moment, showcase its competitive advantages, and move decisively to adopt U.S. AI in the country.

On July 23, 2025, President Trump signed a new executive order on AI, highlighting the leadership of Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick in expanding AI exports to U.S. allies. The administration's prioritization of AI as a strategic

U.S. export invites alignment from willing partners, and Argentina is well-positioned to step forward.

Argentina is a willing partner. And in the calculus of power, willingness matters. By anchoring U.S. AI in Buenos Aires, Washington can outcompete China in the region, promote prosperity, and preserve the liberal order in the digital age. The time to act is now.

Dan Korn is the director of Strategic External Affairs at the Microsoft Corporation. Juan Cruz is a senior adviser (non-resident) with the Americas Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C., and director of the Argentina-U.S. Strategic Forum. He was the special assistant to the president and senior director for Western Hemisphere Affairs at the U.S. National Security Council (2017-2019).

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