Digital deterrence: AI becomes Washington’s newest weapon of hegemony

The US is weaponizing artificial intelligence to hardwire imperial control into the digital infrastructure of its allies and rivals alike.

Jamal Meselmani

The Cradle 

For over a century, oil pipelines and shipping lanes have underpinned the world's military and economic rivalries. Today, that map of power is being redrawn. In Washington, Silicon Valley, and the Pentagon, a new map of dominance is being charted – anchored not in oil or sea lanes, but in silicon, compute capacity, and control over digital infrastructure.

Artificial intelligence (AI) reorganizes geopolitics at its core. The wars in Ukraine, the tightening chokepoints in the Red Sea and Strait of Hormuz, and the sudden US courtship of Venezuela all prove that geography still matters. 

But over the last decade, a parallel infrastructure has emerged – digital, foundational, and increasingly sovereign. At its center is compute, which comprises the hardware, energy, and processing capacity that power advanced AI models. Washington intends to monopolize this power.

Compute supremacy as strategic doctrine

What was once marketed as innovation has hardened into sovereign infrastructure. AI systems now underpin military planning, logistics, and economic coordination. States with advanced computing capabilities possess a strategic edge that extends across both economic and military domains.

The US grasped this shift early. It does not approach AI as a speculative industry, but as a pillar of strategic dominance. With this outlook, Washington aligned private capital, academic research, military doctrine, and industrial policy into a coherent architecture aimed at global preeminence.

The numbers reflect that ambition. The Stanford AI Index 2025 reports US private AI investment at $109.1 billion in a single year – 12 times more than China, 24 times the UK. Institutional investment surpassed $252 billion. This reflects a deliberate strategy to construct hyperscale data centers, concentrate talent, and deploy models on a scale that remains inaccessible to most states.

This digital buildup sits uneasily with the rising tide of multipolar resistance. Across West Asia and the Global South, states and movements aligned with the Axis of Resistance increasingly view US-led AI infrastructure as a form of neo-imperial control – one that mirrors previous battles over oil, currency, and arms. What once relied on warships and sanctions now moves through data centers and algorithmic gatekeeping.

This has already begun to shape the strategic posture of resistance movements and their allies. Iran, for instance, has publicly linked control of data flows and infrastructure to national sovereignty. Resistance actors and digital rights advocates have repeatedly criticized western tech platforms for systemic censorship and surveillance of Palestinian content and dissent, framing the control of digital infrastructure as part of a broader struggle over narrative and power. 

The AI chip chokehold and Pax Silica

AI's beating heart is silicon. Chips, accelerators, and servers are the foundation of every model – and they are increasingly monopolized. In the US, Nvidia’s data center revenue hit nearly $39 billion in a single quarter. 

Modern militaries now rely on AI to pilot drones, parse satellite feeds, defend networks, and calibrate missile systems. Compute infrastructure has become a core battlespace in its own right. Recognizing this, Washington turned export controls into strategic blockades, targeting China’s access to high-end chips.

Beijing, in response, has ramped up domestic chip production, built sprawling data centers, and embedded AI into both civilian and military planning. 

The US State Department’s Pax Silica initiative outlines a techno-industrial alliance spanning Japan, South Korea, the Netherlands, and Israel. Described as a “trust network” for AI supply chains, this framework integrates compute, energy, and fabrication into a shared bloc. 

Israel’s role and digital deterrence

Israel’s integration of cyberwarfare, surveillance technologies, and AI-driven military applications positions it as a key security node within Washington’s strategic framework. Tel Aviv brings battlefield-tested tools and operational doctrine honed through decades of occupation and regional conflict.

Through this network, compute infrastructure doubles as political leverage. Allies inside the system receive privileged access to technology and investment. Those outside face exclusion, scarcity, and spiraling costs. AI infrastructure becomes both carrot and stick.

Once considered neutral, digital architecture has become an instrument of strategic discipline. Washington’s alliance-building increasingly hinges on control over bandwidth, chips, and server space. Compute access is calibrated to alignment.

The presence of Israeli firms in cybersecurity and military tech forums across Asia and Africa further entrenches this alignment. Joint ventures and export deals blur the line between economic partnership and military dependency.

AI, energy, and enforced dependence

The battle for hardware now feeds into a larger project: control of global deployment. The real advantage lies in dominating cloud infrastructure. From Amazon Web Services to Microsoft Azure, the US seeks to embed itself as the substrate of the global digital economy – setting the rules, permissions, and terms of participation.

Governments and corporations worldwide that rely on US cloud infrastructure operate within embedded legal and operational constraints shaped in Washington. Disengaging from these platforms carries steep political and economic penalties. 

These dynamics have already surfaced in the Red Sea conflict, where the Ansarallah-aligned Yemeni Armed Forces (YAF) have demonstrated adaptive targeting systems and cyber capabilities. Though asymmetric, such tools reflect the widening reach of AI into resistance arsenals – and the corresponding urgency in Washington to deny access to rival blocs. Washington achieves control not through force, but through architecture.

There is also a material dimension. Running large-scale models consumes staggering amounts of electricity. Compute requires power plants, cooling grids, and uninterrupted energy flows. In this sense, AI is deeply physical: it relies on raw materials, extractive infrastructure, and territorial control. 

This convergence of compute and energy policy reveals Washington’s broader design. The AI buildup is simply a reassertion of US hegemony under the banner of innovation. 

Closing the circle: AI as imperial infrastructure

AI now sits at the center of US grand strategy, now anchoring Washington’s efforts to harden the architecture of unipolar control. What began as a race for technical advantage has settled into an infrastructure of dominance – one that extends across energy grids, chip supply chains, and the cloud platforms that now shape access to economic life.

This is the new terrain of confrontation. Tel Aviv may bring the cyber tools, Seoul the fabrication, and Silicon Valley the servers – but the levers remain in Washington’s hands. Digital territory is being carved, rationed, and policed.

For the Global South, the frontlines have already shifted. Infrastructure is no longer a neutral zone. Whether through sanctioned chipsets or licensed cloud access, Washington’s control of compute defines the political boundaries of this era.