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Billionaire investor Bill Ackman is sounding the alarm on what he sees as a rapidly escalating technological arms race with China, warning that the stakes could extend beyond economics into national security and democratic stability. <\/p>\n
In a social media post on Wednesday, the Pershing Square CEO pointed to China’s continued buildout of data center infrastructure as a critical signal in the global race toward artificial superintelligence. <\/p>\n
China is not putting moratoriums on data centers. The race for super intelligence needs to be won by the USA or our country and democracy will be at risk. https:\/\/t.co\/6KqrSJ5QHR<\/a> <\/p>\n \u2014 Bill Ackman (@BillAckman) July 15, 2026<\/a> <\/p>\n Don’t Miss: <\/p>\n China’s Data\u2011Center Surge and the AI Arms Race <\/p>\n Unlike parts of the U.S. policy environment, where debates around energy usage and regulatory constraints have at times slowed large-scale data center expansion, Ackman noted that China appears to be moving forward without similar limitations. <\/p>\n That divergence, in his view, is not just about industrial policy\u2014it is a strategic advantage in what he describes as the “race for super intelligence.” <\/p>\n Ackman’s argument follows a clear causal chain. First, he highlights China’s aggressive investment in data centers, which underpin the massive computational power required to train next-generation AI systems.\u00a0 <\/p>\n These facilities are essential for scaling large language models and other advanced AI architectures, particularly as compute demands rise exponentially.\u00a0 <\/p>\n Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., Tencent, Baidu Inc. and ByteDance \u2013 all committing tens of billions to AI infrastructure build\u2011out by 2027 \u2013 are effectively the corporate engine behind Beijing’s push, helping power the “race for super intelligence” Ackman flags. <\/p>\n Trending: Avoid the #1 Investing Mistake: How Your ‘Safe’ Holdings Could Be Costing You Big Time<\/a> <\/p>\n Second, he frames the expansion as direct participation in a high-stakes global competition. The implication is that AI leadership \u2014 especially at the level of artificial general intelligence or beyond \u2014 will be determined by access to compute, data and energy at scale. <\/p>\n Finally, Ackman connects the outcome of that race to broader geopolitical risk. If China were to achieve a decisive lead in superintelligence, he argues, it could place the United States at a structural disadvantage, with implications for both national security and democratic institutions.\u00a0 <\/p>\n Story Continues <\/p>\n “Our country and democracy will be at risk,” he warned. <\/p>\n Why Ackman Says U.S. Democracy is at Risk <\/p>\n The comments come amid growing debate in Washington and Silicon Valley over how to balance AI innovation with safety, regulation and energy constraints. U.S. hyperscalers continue to invest heavily in AI infrastructure, but permitting delays, environmental concerns and grid limitations have emerged as potential bottlenecks. <\/p>\n See Also: Skip the Regrets: The Essential Retirement Tips Experts Wish Everyone Knew Earlier.<\/a> <\/p>\n Meanwhile, China has made AI development a national priority, integrating it into long-term economic and military planning. The country’s centralized approach may allow for faster coordination of resources, particularly in areas like energy allocation and infrastructure deployment. <\/p>\n Ackman’s remarks reflect a broader concern among investors and policymakers that AI is becoming a defining axis of geopolitical competition \u2014 akin to nuclear or space races in prior eras. His warning suggests that infrastructure decisions being made today could ultimately shape the global balance of power in the decades ahead. <\/p>\n This image was generated using artificial intelligence via Dall-E. <\/p>\n Read Next: Think you’re saving enough for your kids? You might be dangerously off \u2014 see why<\/a> <\/p>\n Building Wealth Across More Than Just the Market <\/p>\n Building a resilient portfolio means thinking beyond a single asset or market trend. Economic cycles shift, sectors rise and fall, and no one investment performs well in every environment. That’s why many investors look to diversify with platforms that provide access to real estate, fixed-income opportunities, precious metals, and even self-directed retirement accounts. 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Realberry gives accredited investors direct access to private real estate opportunities <\/a>backed by a team with 35 years of experience, $3.4 billion in assets under management, and $481 million in cumulative distributions paid to investors as of Q4 2025, according to the company. With a portfolio spanning 13 million square feet across seven U.S. states, Realberry focuses on acquiring, developing, and managing real estate with an emphasis on long-term value creation while its principals often invest alongside clients to help align interests. <\/p>\n FarmTogether <\/p>\n Farmland has historically held its value through market volatility and delivered returns uncorrelated to stocks and bonds. For accredited investors, FarmTogether offers direct access to high-quality U.S. farmland starting at $15,000<\/a> \u2014 fully managed, with no landlord headaches. <\/p>\n Immersed <\/p>\n Immersed is building technology for the future of work through spatial computing.<\/a> Known for its AR\/VR productivity platform that enables users to work across multiple virtual screens, the company has grown to more than 1.5 million users worldwide. Immersed is also developing Visor, a lightweight headset designed specifically for professional productivity, positioning the company at the intersection of remote work, extended reality (XR), and next-generation computing. <\/p>\n Fundrise <\/p>\n Private real estate and private credit can add income and stability to a stock-heavy portfolio. Fundrise offers access to diversified private real estate<\/a> and credit strategies through an easy-to-use platform, with professionally managed portfolios designed to generate passive income and long-term growth. <\/p>\n Mode Mobile <\/p>\n Mode Mobile is changing the way people interact with their phones by letting users earn money from the same apps and activities they already use every day.<\/a> Instead of platforms keeping all the advertising revenue, Mode Mobile shares a portion back with users who engage with content, play games, and scroll on their devices. Named one of Deloitte’s fastest-growing software companies in North America, the company has built a large beta user base and is scaling a model that turns everyday smartphone usage into a potential income stream.\u00a0 <\/p>\n EquityMultiple\u00a0 <\/p>\n For accredited investors looking beyond stocks and bonds, EquityMultiple provides access to vetted commercial real estate deals starting at $5,000<\/a>,<\/a> with only ~5% of opportunities passing their due diligence process. <\/p>\n \u00a9 2026 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Benzinga and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below. Billionaire…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":558635,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[220,218,236233,219,5581,114,2392,217180,61,60,80],"class_list":["post-558634","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-artificial-intelligence","tag-ai","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-artificial-superintelligence","tag-artificialintelligence","tag-bill-ackman","tag-china","tag-data-center","tag-global-race","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/558634","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=558634"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/558634\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/558635"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=558634"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=558634"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=558634"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}