Comment by elmer2

"this won’t really benefit the public at large when it’s done"

I'm currently enjoying subsidized AI usage at relatively cheap prices from these same companies. It's cheaper than a cell phone bill and most people can afford it.

"Or to put it another way, a semiconductor, car or airplane factory wouldn’t really count as “infrastructure”, would they?"

No, but flying on an airplane 50+ years ago was only for the rich. Everyone I know now has flown somewhere, and it's very obtainable. I remember cell phones in the 80s being > $1 minute and a sign of being wealthy.

Capitalism can and does bring the costs of these things down.

Data centers will definitely benefit the public, as long as the government doesn't decide on creating their own monopoly.