Andreessen-Horowitz-backed group plans data-center ads for midterms

A new group called Build American AI plans to blast voters in battleground states with ads advocating for data centers, several outlets have reported. The group says it is affiliated with Leading the Future (LTF), a super PAC heavily funded by venture capitalists Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz along with OpenAI President Greg Brockman.

Build American AI told Bloomberg it will focus its ads on Kansas, Ohio, and Wisconsin, where concerns about data centers have become a central theme in statewide elections, and said its ad budget is in the millions of dollars.

LTF launched with over $50 million in funding and has mostly used that money to donate to specific politicians, according to Politico, supporting candidates who advocate for AI while working to oppose those who lobby against the technology, sources told the outlet. LTF has become such a prominent, and not particularly popular, force in AI-related election politics that OpenAI publicly distanced itself from the group in a June blog post, noting that LTF had received support from Brockman and his wife, Anna, and writing: “OpenAI does not direct the activities of LTF, or have visibility into their operations.” OpenAI also criticized some of LTF’s tactics, saying groups advocating on AI should be honest about whom they represent and avoid astroturfing — organizing paid campaigns to look like grassroots support.

LTF is not the only AI-focused super PAC backed by prominent Silicon Valley names: Anthropic, for instance, is a known supporter of Public First Action, a group that backs AI regulation. Meanwhile, Andreessen and Horowitz’s venture firm, Andreessen Horowitz, is the biggest donor so far to the midterm elections, spending more than high-profile donors like Elon Musk and George Soros, according to The New York Times, having spread more than $115 million so far in disclosed federal contributions. Beyond LTF and AI causes, the firm is also heavily backing pro-crypto efforts, particularly through the crypto super PAC Fairshake.

Why it matters

The data-center ad push shows how AI’s biggest financial backers are moving beyond funding startups to directly shaping public opinion and elections in the states where data-center buildouts face local resistance.