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56 I-CONNECT007 MAGAZINE I SEPTEMBER 2026 A M E R I CA N M A D E A DVO CACY BY S H A N E W H I T ES I D E , P C BA A H yperscale data centers are now all over the U.S., from large cities to small towns, and building out the burgeoning AI econ- omy is on the minds of policymakers and legis- lators at all levels of government. According to Forbes, there are approximately 580 operational hyperscale data centers in the U.S., out of roughly 1,360 worldwide. These types of AI data centers have been a boon for electrical and construction workers and public utilities. Unfortunately, despite being full of elec- tronics, the American microelectronics industry has not benefited from the massive investments made by the world's largest companies. Instead, the servers for U.S. data centers are sourced where they are most easily obtained. The irony is that most hyperscale data center developers design these servers in America but source them from China or Taiwan. Throughout the debate about where to put data centers and how many will be needed, it's clear that an American company building a new data Don't Build Our AI Economy on Foreign-sourced Components