The promise of AI is that it gives people more power to shape their own futures. It can help someone learn a new skill, build a business, or solve a problem that was previously out of reach. Building more computing infrastructure capacity in the United States can help lower the cost of delivering AI, put these tools in more people’s hands, and ensure America stays at the forefront of the technology.
The communities that host this infrastructure should have a clear say in shaping their futures, too. Residents should be able to influence how a campus is developed, hold developers accountable for covering the cost of powering it, and share in the jobs and business opportunities it creates. How we build these campuses is one of the first tests of whether the benefits of AI will be broadly shared.
Today we’re publishing our National Community Compact(opens in a new window) and a Compute Campus Policy Blueprint(opens in a new window). The compact sets out what communities can expect from OpenAI at future campuses that we own and operate. The blueprint proposes policies to help ensure that compute campus development gives communities a meaningful voice, protects families from new costs, and broadly shares the economic gains of AI.
This builds on work we began in January, when we announced our Stargate Community commitments to pay our own way on energy and develop plans shaped by local priorities. We followed with specific commitments in Georgia and Ohio, covering energy costs, water use, local investment and accountability. Throughout that work, we’ve listened to residents, local leaders, schools and businesses about what matters to their communities. Today’s announcement is the next step in that ongoing effort.
Our commitments to the communities where we build
Every future compute campus OpenAI owns and operates will have its own local compact. We’ll engage residents early enough to ensure their input shapes project plans, give them a local point of contact throughout the life of the campus, and report publicly each year on how we’re doing. Each compact will reflect local priorities and include a common set of commitments:
Pay our own way on energy and infrastructure. We’ll pay the full cost of the electricity we use and the infrastructure needed to serve us. Before major spending begins, we’ll provide financial assurances so other customers are protected if a project is delayed, reduced, or canceled.
Protect local resources and report on our impact. We’ll develop a water plan for each campus, prioritize closed-loop or low-water cooling, and publish site-level water and electricity use. We’ll publish construction plans and independent noise studies before operations begin and annually afterward. And we will not use non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) with public officials, allowing only narrow protections covering legitimate security information, trade secrets, or proprietary or competitively sensitive information.
Create opportunities for local workers and businesses. We’ll publish the jobs we expect to create, work with unions and training providers to help residents prepare for them, and report annually on hiring and apprenticeships. We’ll also make sustained investments in priorities residents help select.
Those priorities will differ from place to place. In Effingham County, Georgia, residents helped shape a $4.8 million grant to provide free school meals for all 14,000 students in the county. In Pike County, Ohio, families identified childcare as a priority, leading to a joint $6 million commitment from OpenAI and SB Energy.
A policy blueprint for responsible development
Families should be able to count on basic protections whoever builds a campus in their community. Voluntary commitments from companies are an important starting point, but our blueprint goes further—asking federal, state, and local policymakers to establish clear rules for how the industry builds. New policy is required to establish trust and confidence between communities, elected officials and companies. Lawmakers should establish rules to advance responsible investment, protect residents, and ensure that the benefits of AI infrastructure are broadly shared.
That starts with who pays for power. State utility commissions should require large electricity customers to cover the costs they add to the grid and protect other customers if a project falls through. Utilities should also make it easier for campuses to connect if they can safely cut demand when power is scarce. At our planned Effingham County campus, for example, our agreement with Georgia Power allows the utility to reduce the power it delivers to us by up to 1,000 megawatts during periods of high demand. Congress can help meet growing demand by speeding up transmission upgrades and restoring and expanding tax incentives for clean electricity.
Communities also need a way to hold developers accountable. The blueprint calls for public reporting on water, energy, noise, and hiring, and for narrow limits on when developers can require public officials to sign NDAs. When states or local governments offer tax incentives, the terms should be public, with measurable commitments and a way to recover benefits if a developer falls short.
Finally, the blueprint proposes practical ways to keep more of the work local to ensure compute campuses support local workers and local businesses. Developers can share purchasing plans early enough for local suppliers to compete for contracts. Employers, building trades unions, and community colleges can use hiring forecasts to train residents for jobs they know will be available, from electrical work during construction to maintaining power and cooling systems for years afterward.
Building from the community up
The investments that help America compete globally can also help communities prosper locally. That starts with giving residents a say while plans can still change and a way to hold developers accountable for delivering on their commitments. That’s what we’re committing to at the campuses we own and operate, and what we believe people should be able to count on wherever AI infrastructure is built across the country.
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