OpenAI pushes 'compute campuses' label for AI data centers

OpenAI will push the public and policymakers to stop calling its new AI sites "data centers" and start calling them "compute campuses," part of a post-midterm policy and PR offensive led by chief global affairs officer Chris Lehane, Business Insider reported.

The pitch arrived with a spokesperson line to the outlet: "Compute campuses better describes the scale and role of the infrastructure we're building for AI. These are long-term investments in computing, energy infrastructure and skilled work." A Pew Research poll cited in the reporting found 54% of Americans say AI data centers are bad for the environment.

Lehane also told Axios the midterms are "a bit of a movie trailer" for the 2028 presidential election, when he expects AI to be the issue. Alongside the rebrand, OpenAI plans to push Congress for mandatory "speed limits" on the most powerful AI systems and to propose state legislation that gives host communities a meaningful say in how projects are built and what benefits they receive.