Policy priorities

Innovation & Manufacturing Leadership

America’s compute leadership depends on new technology and a reliable supply of the equipment needed to deploy it. DPN advocates for policies that accelerate research, modernize facilities, and expand domestic manufacturing of computing, networking, cooling, and electrical equipment.

By the numbers

The equipment bottleneck

Critical grid equipment is scarce, slow to arrive, and mostly made overseas, even as federal investment in domestic manufacturing grows.

82%

Of large power transformers are imported

Only 18% are made in the U.S.

U.S. Department of Energy, Large Power Transformer Resilience Report to Congress (2024)View source

120 weeks

Average lead time for a power transformer

Up from about 50 weeks in 2021

Wood Mackenzie (2024)View source

$52.7B

CHIPS and Science Act funding

For U.S. semiconductor manufacturing, research, and workforce

National Institute of Standards and Technology, CHIPS for AmericaView source
On this page

Challenge

Building advanced compute depends on two things moving fast: new technology, and the equipment to deploy it. Long lead times for transformers and switchgear, and reliance on concentrated global manufacturing, can stall projects and upgrades. Outdated permitting rules, rigid equipment classifications, and narrow incentives slow the adoption of new technology. Operators moving between digital asset and AI/HPC workloads face added uncertainty as their equipment needs change.

Approach

DPN supports a technology-neutral framework that links research and commercialization with stronger domestic production. We advocate for public-private partnerships, demonstration projects, and investment incentives across hardware, software, networking, cooling, and power management. In addition, we advocate for predictable permitting for manufacturing and upgrades, diversified sourcing, and practical equipment standards, while preserving operators’ freedom to choose the technology that fits their workloads, sites, and business models.

Solution

DPN’s innovation and supply chain agenda centers on three priorities:

  1. Accelerate Innovation and Modernization

    Support research, pilot programs, and investment incentives that help operators deploy emerging technologies, upgrade existing facilities, and transition to new computing workloads.

  2. Strengthen Domestic Manufacturing and Supply Resilience

    Expand U.S. production of critical electrical and computing equipment, support diversified sourcing, and reduce procurement bottlenecks.

  3. Promote Interoperability and Secure Deployment

    Support industry-led standards, compatible equipment specifications where appropriate, and practical supply chain security measures that improve reliability while letting new technologies compete on their merits.

Let’s build what comes next

AI, data centers, and digital asset infastructure are reshaping demand. Help keep the grid reliable and affordable as it grows.

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Digital Power Network
Digital Power Network