Ross Perot Jr., the newly named chairman of the board of directors of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, recently discussed artificial intelligence to the growth of domestic manufacturing to immigration and their impact on U.S. businesses during a fireside chat.
Perot, chairman of AllianceTexas developer Hillwood and The Perot Group, spoke during an Oct. 15 event with Irving-Las Colinas Chamber of Commerce CEO Beth Bowman.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is a powerful lobbying organization that represents 3 million businesses — most of which are small businesses — as well as state and local chambers nationwide.
As chairman of Hillwood, Perot was key to bringing MP Materials to Alliance, where they are part of a U.S. manufacturing renaissance that has favored Fort Worth’s history and demographics.
MP Materials is the largest U.S. manufacturer of specialized magnets that are essential components in vehicles, drones, robotics, electronics and aerospace and defense systems.
In July, the U.S. Department of Defense invested $400 million in the company to shore up the country’s domestic supply of rare earth minerals and magnets.
A week later, Apple Inc. bit into the company with a $500 million commitment to purchase magnets from MP Materials for its products.
At the time, MP Materials also announced the expansion of its Fort Worth plant, which currently has the capability to produce 1,000 metric tons of rare earth magnets annually. Company representatives said they were beginning plans for a second plant.
Perot said Hillwood is working to secure that second plant for the city as well.
“We’re working hard on it,” he said. “It’s a big competition, but I think, since they’re already here, I hope that gives us a bit of a benefit.”
Perot said Gov. Greg Abbott is also involved in negotiations.
“The governor’s already met with them. The whole Texas team is on the field. I’m optimistic,” he said.
Here are a few highlights of his discussion, edited for length and clarity.
- Businesses want immigration concerns solved, Perot said, noting that both political parties have a difficult time reaching consensus on any related reform.
“The sooner the better,” he said. “The political leadership understands it, but it takes the American people to talk to their representatives, saying, ‘We need you guys to focus on this.’ It’s a big political issue, and it should be resolved, because we need all the legal talent in the country we can possibly have.”
The economic demand for talent could prompt change as industries need legal labor, he said.
- Housing affordability: Homes were about $75,000 when he started out as a developer, he said. Now they cost about five times as much in the area.
“Still, $380,000 is a hell of a lot better than California, but it’s not what we should have here,” he said.
“We’re working on that question of how do we get a more affordable home and more affordable neighborhoods? Maybe you’ll redesign the home.”
Technologies, such as 3D printed homes, do make construction less expensive but only by about 5%, he said.
“I told the team: we want 50% cheaper,” he said.
- North Texas population growth: “What makes North Texas? The reason a million people every seven years move here is that we can grow in 360 degrees. We have no barriers. It will be New York, LA and Dallas-Fort Worth, then Chicago pretty soon.
“New York’s got the Atlantic. LA’s got the Pacific. We don’t have any barriers. We’re at 8 million now. We’ll be 12 million by 2050, then by 2100, we think there will be 24 million to 25 million in Dallas-Fort Worth because we can grow.”
- Artificial intelligence and Texas: Perot is a big believer in AI and believes the nation should “dominate the AI revolution.”
“The U.S. Western models are, for sure, going to dominate the Chinese model,” he said. “If you want your information to come from the Chinese Communist Party, then you want to hang out over there.”
Texas should be a big player in data center and AI growth, he said. The state is No. 2 behind Virginia in data center expansion.
Power is key in that area.
“We’re everything. We’re an all-the-above state. So wind, solar, nuclear. The Army just rolled out that small nuclear program yesterday, Janus, little nuclear reactors that are going by military bases. You take those little mini nukes and put them next to the AI data centers, you’re done.
“You’re seeing more and more of the big AI go off the grid. They’re generating their own power, a lot of them right now with Texas natural gas. And so natural gas will be their bridge. And then you’ll see small nukes end up, like at a Stargate in Abilene, you’ll have a small nuke out there probably before you know it.”
Stargate is part of a partnership between OpenAI, Oracle, MGX and SoftBank that plans a network of data center campuses across the United States. To meet these demands, Stargate has filed permits to operate natural gas turbines at its Abilene site. The company also is considering generating power there with solar and wind projects as well as small nuclear reactors. Another site is under development in nearby Shackelford County.
Bob Francis is business editor for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at bob.francis@fortworthreport.org.
At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
Related
Fort Worth Report is certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative for adhering to standards for ethical journalism.
Republish This Story
Republishing is free for noncommercial entities. Commercial entities are prohibited without a licensing agreement. Contact us for details.