Axios: Big AI bets

Posted on March 15, 2026 by michelleclarke2015
1 big thing: Big AI bets
 
Illustrated collage of columns with stripes and binary code in the background
Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
 
As the United States gears up to celebrate a signature innovation — modern democracy! — American industry is pushing to lead in the high-tech innovation race of the future.From the White House to state capitals, leaders are reshaping how America innovates, and they’re placing high-stakes bets on AI and science that may set the course for the next 250 years. 

But America’s domination isn’t guaranteed — especially if it places the wrong bets, write Axios senior tech policy reporter Ashley Gold and editor Mackenzie Weinger.To help explain how today’s policies are shaping the future, we isolated three pillars driving our next era of innovation:

1. Betting big on robotics: The next era won’t be won in the cloud. It’ll be won on factory floors.The U.S. leads today in large language models and foundational AI. But integrating AI into physical systems — in other words, creating practical uses that improve our lives — will matter more than flashy LLM breakthroughs. 

That’s where robots come in.The number of new robots deployed each year has more than doubled from a decade ago, now topping 500,000 units globally. But Beijing is leading the robot revolution: China has over 2 million industrial robots inside its factories — five times more than the U.S. 

What we’re watching: The White House is reportedly considering an executive order that could spur production of robotics in the U.S. as part of a push to reshore manufacturing.

2. Going all in on data centers and AI infrastructure: Robots could build the future, but data centers will power it. The Trump administration has made it a policy priority to expand the infrastructure behind the AI boom. President Trump issued an executive order last July to speed up AI data center projects, calling for faster and more efficient permitting approval. 

What we’re watching: Local tensions around the impact that massive data centers have on electricity prices and quality of life are intensifying, and some communities have blocked projects entirely.

3. Relying on industry — and regulating less. The new rulebook is to let the market lead: move fast, regulate later and let that ethos pave the way for the next generation of innovation.The government is pulling back from bankrolling the kind of basic research that previously made America a tech superpower.Instead, it’s leaning into a market-driven system of innovation spurred by venture capital cash, Big Tech action and Silicon Valley’s influence on policy. 

By the numbers: Federal money funded 67% of research and development in the 1960s. Now, it’s just 19%, according to the most recent NSF data.The private sector now funds about 75% of domestic R&D. 

What we’re watching: In the absence of major legislation or regulations providing AI rules of the road, procurement is policy. The government is shaping the future of innovation through its contracts and partnerships.Read on for a snapshot of transformational AI innovations we’re tracking.
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About michelleclarke2015

Life event that changes all: Horse riding accident in Zimbabwe in 1993, a fractured skull et al including bipolar anxiety, chronic fatigue …. co-morbidities (Nietzche 'He who has the reason why can deal with any how' details my health history from 1993 to date). 17th 2017 August operation for breast cancer (no indications just an appointment came from BreastCheck through the Post). Trinity College Dublin Business Economics and Social Studies (but no degree) 1997-2003; UCD 1997/1998 night classes) essays, projects, writings. Trinity Horizon Programme 1997/98 (Centre for Women Studies Trinity College Dublin/St. Patrick's Foundation (Professor McKeon) EU Horizon funded: research study of 15 women (I was one of this group and it became the cornerstone of my journey to now 2017) over 9 mth period diagnosed with depression and their reintegration into society, with special emphasis on work, arts, further education; Notes from time at Trinity Horizon Project 1997/98; Articles written for Irishhealth.com 2003/2004; St Patricks Foundation monthly lecture notes for a specific period in time; Selection of Poetry including poems written by people I know; Quotations 1998-2017; other writings mainly with theme of social justice under the heading Citizen Journalism Ireland. Letters written to friends about life in Zimbabwe; Family history including Michael Comyn KC, my grandfather, my grandmother's family, the O'Donnellan ffrench Blake-Forsters; Moral wrong: An acrimonious divorce but the real injustice was the Catholic Church granting an annulment – you can read it and make your own judgment, I have mine. Topics I have written about include annual Brain Awareness week, Mashonaland Irish Associataion in Zimbabwe, Suicide (a life sentence to those left behind); Nostalgia: Tara Hill, Co. Meath.
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