Amazon is issuing a warning regarding the growing public opposition to data center construction across the United States, stating that this could cost the U.S. points in the global AI competition.

Amazon Cloud business leader Matt Garman published a blog post over 3,000 words on Friday, stating that if data center construction is widely suspended across the United States, the "consequences will last for generations."

The CEO of Amazon Web Services ( AWS ) wrote: "The reason for urgently advancing data center construction is that it's not just our country that sees the benefits of AI to the economy and national security. Countries that lead in the field of AI will shape it and reap the most benefits in both the short and long term."

He added, "The choices we make today will determine this outcome, and any slack in the country's attention or determination could leave us behind, and possibly irreversibly so."

Garman indicates that data being considered across the United States shows that there are over 100 data center suspension orders being discussed in various places; if these measures are implemented, the United States 'may be writing its own ticket to failure in this race.'

He said, "As a country, we cannot afford to put ourselves in such a situation."

This Amazon executive also stated that data center construction is "so important from a geopolitical perspective that there are widespread reports indicating that some countries are intentionally spreading misinformation about data centers in the United States, in an attempt to persuade us to slow down our progress."

Garman mentioned at the beginning of the long article that he believes the United States learned "a significant lesson" from World War II: "the need to establish a national transportation system within the country."

He wrote that the construction of America's modern transportation system "changed the American economy and lifestyle," and compared the current craze for data centers to its contemporary version.

"Seventy years later, we are in the midst of the greatest wave of infrastructure construction since the advent of the highway era – our digital infrastructure," writes Garman.

Garman indicates that data centers provide the computational power necessary for running the AI system, and they have supported many aspects of modern life, ranging from shopping and banking services to stock trading, travel bookings, streaming entertainment, as well as disease prevention and treatment.

He wrote, "It's still in a very early stage, but AI is already changing businesses, industries, and the customer experience in ways that we couldn't have imagined just a few years ago."

He continued, "AI will power the next generation of enterprises, hospitals, schools, and other critical public services, as well as vital defense systems, intelligence analysis, cyber defense, and satellite operations. At the same time, it will create new types of high-skilled jobs that will make all this possible."

At the same time, the article by Garman attempts to refute many common concerns raised by opponents of the AI data center project, such as water and electricity consumption needs and pollution issues. It also acknowledges that Amazon understands that "there are concerns in some communities where the data centers are being built."

He also announced that Amazon will invest over $1 billion in the communities where its data centers are located over the next five years.

Garman said, "It's not Amazon that decides what the community needs; rather, Amazon provides the resources for the community to make its own decisions."