This research track studies who owns the rails of the AI economy: compute, chips, energy, cloud concentration, model infrastructure, and strategic data access. The central question is blunt: who controls the infrastructure that intelligence runs on — and who becomes dependent on it?
Most people talk about AI as software. That is incomplete. AI is also a physical and geopolitical system shaped by semiconductor bottlenecks, energy demand, data center concentration, cloud dependence, and capital intensity. This track examines the ownership structures beneath AI and how those structures determine power, dependency, and long-run value capture.
Whoever controls compute, energy, cloud distribution, and the enabling infrastructure of AI will shape which firms scale, which countries remain sovereign, and which institutions become permanently downstream from someone else’s stack.
A framing paper on why compute, chips, energy, and cloud concentration matter more than most AI commentary admits.
An analysis of how power generation, grid readiness, and data center economics constrain AI expansion.
A study of what nations must own, access, or negotiate to avoid becoming permanently dependent consumers of foreign intelligence infrastructure.
A short memo on where control, fragility, and chokepoints really sit in the AI hardware chain.
Why the hyperscaler layer may be one of the most underestimated sources of leverage in AI.
How national AI ambition is quietly pulling countries back toward industrial strategy.
Why electricity and grid access may matter as much as model quality.
Who has more power: those who build the models or those who own the rails they run on?
A field note on export controls, alliances, and the emerging politics of compute scarcity.
A developing index mapping where strategic AI compute is concentrated.
A framework for comparing whether regions can realistically support AI infrastructure growth.
A structured view of which countries are building real capacity versus narrative-only capability.
For briefings, collaborations, speaking, or strategic conversations on AI infrastructure, sovereign capability, or ownership concentration, contact the Institute directly.
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