Elon Musk Praises China's Solar Surge As Daniel Newman Warns US Risks Falling Behind Beijing
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Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) CEO Elon Musk and Futurum CEO Daniel Newman have pointed toward data to make a stark argument: the global AI race may be decided by energy capacity, not semiconductor dominance.
China's Power Buildout Outpaces U.S.
The new data shows that China has been dramatically outpacing the U.S. in electricity generation growth over the past year, led by a massive surge in solar power additions.
The figures indicate China added several times more solar-generated electricity than the U.S., alongside gains in wind, hydro and nuclear power.
Musk reacted to the data by calling China's solar expansion "incredible," adding that the U.S. needs to match that pace if it wants to remain competitive.
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Real AI Race Is Energy, Not Chips: Newman
In a separate post, while sharing the same data, Newman said the chart underscores a deeper structural problem for the U.S.
While American companies like Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA) remain years ahead in advanced AI chips, Newman argued that the advantage could be undermined by a weak energy policy.
Newman said the U.S. has neglected power generation and grid expansion for decades, warning that AI systems are becoming increasingly energy-hungry. If electricity supply fails to keep up, he said, chip leadership alone will not be enough to secure long-term AI dominance.
He called for an "all hands on deck" approach, advocating near-term use of traditional power sources alongside long-term investments in nuclear energy.
Energy Is Emerging As Real Battleground In Global AI Race
The statements by Musk and Newman come as Michael Burry, the investor best known for foreseeing the 2008 financial crisis, said China's fast-expanding power generation capacity gives it a built-in advantage in AI as the technology increasingly depends on energy-hungry chips.
Goldman Sachs forecasts that global electricity consumption from data centers, including AI-related workloads, will jump 175% by 2030—roughly the equivalent of adding one of the world's top 10 electricity-consuming nations.
In the U.S., power demand is projected to increase about 2.6% per year through 2030, driven largely by rapid data center growth, far outpacing average electricity demand increases seen over the past two decades.
Benzinga Edge Rankings rank Nvidia in the 97th percentile for growth, with additional metrics showing how its performance stacks up against peers such as AMD and Intel.
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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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