Policymakers and military leaders recognize artificial intelligence as a pivotal element in international security. A new study explores the infrastructure needed to develop sophisticated AI, revealing the countries best positioned to lead the way.
Lance Hunter, PhD, a professor of political science at Augusta University, published an article in the journal Armed Forces and Society assessing how countries’ infrastructures impact the level and sophistication of AI development. His research focuses on the relationship between data centers, energy capabilities, and the advancement of AI.
Hunter explains that a country’s ability to compete in AI development is often tied directly to its energy supply. Large data centers, essential for powering sophisticated AI programs, require significant energy, primarily electricity. He points out that data centers currently consume an estimated 1% to 2% of global power, with projections indicating a potential 160% increase in energy demands by 2030.
“Countries with the necessary data centers and energy production capabilities to develop and run sophisticated AI programs will have a distinct advantage in the AI race. There’s a lot of discussion regarding whether China or the United States are ahead in AI development because of the security ramifications of who’s leading,” Hunter said. “This paper attempts to examine the infrastructure countries have in place that can support sophisticated AI development regarding security and see where countries rank.”
In his research, Hunter developed four indices to evaluate countries: data centers, energy production, energy efficiency, and additional economic, technological, military, and cyber factors influencing AI development.
“I found that the United States is currently ahead globally in terms of having the infrastructure in place to develop sophisticated AI regarding security. China is a very close second, and Russia is a distant third with numerous countries closely trailing, such as the United Kingdom, France, Australia, Canada and Germany,” Hunter stated. “One of the things I found is that China has a moderate advantage over the United States regarding energy production and a slight advantage regarding energy efficiency. However, the U.S. has an advantage regarding its data centers and the sophistication of technology surrounding AI that can enhance AI development regarding security.”
Hunter also addresses the recent emergence of DeepSeek, China’s large language model. He acknowledges its impact on the conversation concerning the U.S. and China’s place in the AI landscape and infrastructure requirements. While this development highlights opportunities for smaller companies to leverage existing AI technology more efficiently, Hunter emphasizes that substantial computing power and energy are still crucial for leadership.
“While the DeepSeek breakthrough illustrates that start-up companies can take existing AI technologies, such as ChatGPT, and build off them more efficiently, countries and companies that seek to lead in AI development still require large amounts of computing power and energy,” Hunter said.
As an example, Hunter noted that major U.S. tech companies like Meta, Alphabet, and Microsoft, responded to DeepSeek’s emergence by announcing intentions to increase spending on the essential infrastructure needed for AI development — data centers, computing power, and energy capabilities.
“While some startup companies such as DeepSeek can utilize existing AI technology in a cost-efficient manner, the spending priorities of major U.S. tech companies indicate that large-scale data centers, significant computing power, and substantial, efficient energy production capabilities remain critical to leading in AI development,”
