While the promises wouldn’t be binding — and would lack the force of law — administration officials believe that formal, public pledges could bring accountability and offer some assurance to consumers worried that the rapid development of data centres that are crucial for artificial intelligence could lead to environmental damage and higher costs.
(Feb 26): US President Donald Trump is convening technology executives at the White House next week to sign pledges committing their companies to foot the electricity bill for energy-hungry data centres.
Representatives of firms including Amazon.com Inc, Meta Platforms Inc, Microsoft Corp and Google parent Alphabet Inc are expected to attend a March 4 event with the president, a White House official said. Others on the invite list include Elon Musk’s xAI Corp, Oracle Corp and OpenAI Inc.
