President Donald Trump said artificial intelligence could become "bigger than the internet" and urged regulation that preserves U.S. leadership over China without stifling the industry at the Aug. 19 White House technology summit. He defended rapid construction of AI data centers and dedicated power plants, citing jobs, tax revenue and investment, while acknowledging that the sector could use "a little public relations help" amid opposition over electricity consumption, water use and environmental effects. Research from Georgia Tech found that data centers can raise retail electricity prices by about 5% in affected areas, with larger economic gains in metropolitan counties than rural communities. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro signed new energy, environmental and transparency requirements, while New York Gov. Kathy Hochul imposed a statewide pause of up to one year on new hyperscale facilities requiring at least 50 megawatts. CoreWeave CEO Mike Intrator said moratoriums would affect where AI infrastructure is built rather than reduce demand; the company reported 4.2 gigawatts of contracted power and nearly 6 gigawatts of visibility including options and letters of intent. SEC Chairman Paul Atkins, CFTC Acting Chairman Mike Selig, and representatives from Coinbase and Ripple attended, while Axios reported that prediction-market firms Polymarket and Kalshi were intentionally excluded. The summit preceded the CFTC's first Innovation Advisory Committee meeting on Aug. 20, highlighting Washington's support for established crypto platforms and AI infrastructure alongside continued caution toward event-based markets regulated as derivatives.