President Donald Trump says big new AI data centers should generate their own electricity and pay the communities around them. In a Truth Social post at about 1:37 a.m. ET on Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026, he wrote that "New and large, in some cases gigantic, Data enters are mandated by me to make their own electricity, and give or sell any excess back to the local community, or grid," CNBC and the Wall Street Journal reported.

What Trump said

Trump wrote that "there could be a substantial decrease" in electricity prices under that approach, and told companies: "If companies want to make their Data Centers popular, pay the community, and/or individuals within the community, a 'dividend.'" He added that data centers "that were highly unpopular in a certain area, have become extremely popular when a financial deal is struck. MAKE DEALS, and get them built!!!"

Is it actually a mandate?

The post did not come with an executive order or a federal rule, and none has been published since. Earlier this year the White House promoted a voluntary "Ratepayer Protection Pledge" for data center builders, which experts quoted in coverage said had no enforcement mechanism, according to the trump.fm post archive's fact check. Connecting data centers to the grid falls under federal regulator FERC, but data centers are end customers of power under state jurisdiction, Bloomberg Law notes, and Quartz reports Washington is still scrambling to write new grid rules for AI power demand.

Industry reaction

Nebius Chief Revenue Officer Marc Boroditsky told CNBC on the sidelines of Nvidia's GTC Berlin that the company is "100% in principle" having discussions about investing in communities, adding: "it's not crazy to consider something like that." Crusoe CEO Chase Lochmiller told CNBC that "Energy is always a bottleneck," and that permitting and work with local communities are a growing part of getting AI factories online. CNBC notes data centers have become a flashpoint ahead of the November midterm elections, with several states weighing moratoriums.

Why it matters for Musk's AI compute

Musk's xAI, now part of SpaceX, already runs its own gas turbines to power its Colossus 2 site near Memphis, a setup that is the subject of an ongoing NAACP lawsuit (our earlier story). Tesla is also planning the Terafab chip plant with SpaceX in Texas; see the Terafab tracker. Trump's post does not name any company.