OpenAI Plans Post-Election Push, Including a New Name for Data Centers

OpenAI is getting ready to make its case to the public once the US midterm elections wrap up on Tuesday, according to TechCrunch. The outlet reports that the company has lined up what it calls a public relations blitz for after the vote, at a moment when Democrats appear likely to take back the House of Representatives and could also win the Senate.

One idea under discussion is a fresh label for data centers: AI compute campuses. Chris Lehane, who leads global affairs at OpenAI, raised the idea along with other proposals in comments to Axios, TechCrunch reported.

Lehane framed the midterms as an early preview of the 2028 presidential race, when he expects artificial intelligence to sit at the center of the contest. He described the coming election cycle as a short teaser for what voters will see then, according to the report.

The broader effort is meant to shape how the AI debate develops from here. Besides the renaming, the proposals include setting what Lehane called speed limits for AI, helping the public view the technology as a tool that gives people more control in daily life, and pressing the US government to help write global standards, TechCrunch reported.

On the subject of data centers, Lehane characterized the ongoing argument as worthwhile. He said local communities ought to hold companies to account so that residents genuinely gain something transformative from such projects, according to the report.

Pushback over data centers has already changed corporate behavior. Amazon and Microsoft have both said they will stop using nondisclosure agreements when negotiating with local governments, a shift TechCrunch linked to the pressure around these facilities.

OpenAI's planned campaign follows a period in which data centers have drawn strong opposition in many places. The company's answer, at least in part, appears to be a change in vocabulary.