China’s National Development and Reform Commission released its second batch of major projects for 2026 on April 21, directing proceeds from the country’s ultra-long special treasury bonds toward a range of infrastructure investments, including artificial intelligence infrastructure as a named priority category, according to reporting from China Daily and AAStocks. The announcement confirms that AI infrastructure, data centers, computing clusters, and the network infrastructure that supports them will continue to receive direct government funding support in 2026, alongside the clean energy, urban pipeline, and transportation projects that have historically dominated the NDRC’s major project lists.
What Ultra-Long Treasury Bonds Are and Why They Matter for AI
China’s ultra-long special treasury bonds are a fiscal instrument the central government has used to fund strategic infrastructure investments without adding to local government debt. The bonds, with maturities of 20, 30, or 50 years, are issued by the central government, and the proceeds are directed to specific investment categories approved by the State Council and administered by the NDRC.
The inclusion of AI infrastructure in the second batch of 2026 major projects is significant because it signals that the central government views AI computing infrastructure as a national strategic asset, on par with power grids, high-speed rail, and water management systems. This framing has practical implications: it means that AI infrastructure projects can access central government funding on terms more favorable than those for commercial financing, and that the NDRC will actively coordinate the development of AI infrastructure across provinces and regions to avoid duplication and ensure strategic coherence.
What AI Infrastructure Investments Are Being Funded
The NDRC’s major project lists typically include a mix of new construction, facility expansions, and technology upgrades. For AI infrastructure, the investments are likely to include the construction of new large-scale computing clusters in regions with abundant renewable energy, consistent with the State Council’s April 20 directive to leverage AI for grid transformation, as well as the expansion of existing data center capacity in major cities.
China has been building AI computing infrastructure at a pace that rivals or exceeds that of the United States. The country has been building large-scale GPU clusters, investing in domestic AI chip manufacturing to reduce reliance on Nvidia hardware, and developing the network infrastructure to connect distributed computing resources. The NDRC’s direct funding support accelerates this buildout by providing capital at lower cost than commercial financing and by coordinating investments across the fragmented landscape of provincial and municipal data center projects.
The clean energy component of the second project batch is directly relevant to AI infrastructure. Data centers are among the most energy-intensive facilities in the economy, and the cost and availability of electricity is a critical factor in the economics of AI computing. China’s investment in renewable energy infrastructure, such as wind, solar, and hydropower, is partly driven by the need to provide affordable, reliable power for AI data centers. The NDRC’s coordination of AI infrastructure and clean energy investments reflects an understanding of this connection.
The NDRC’s Role in China’s AI Buildout
The NDRC’s involvement in AI infrastructure is part of a broader pattern of central government coordination of China’s AI development. Unlike the United States, where AI infrastructure investment is driven primarily by private capital from hyperscalers and venture-backed startups, China’s AI buildout involves a combination of private investment and state direction. The NDRC plays a coordinating role — identifying strategic priorities, allocating government funding, and ensuring that private investment is directed toward areas of national importance.
This coordination model has both advantages and limitations. The advantages include the ability to make large, long-term investments that private capital might not support, coordinate infrastructure development across regions, and prioritize strategic objectives over short-term commercial returns. The limitations include the risk of misallocation, investing in infrastructure that does not match actual demand, and the potential for political considerations to distort investment decisions.
The NDRC’s track record in infrastructure coordination has been mixed. China’s high-speed rail network, built under NDRC coordination, is one of the most impressive infrastructure achievements in modern history. China’s solar panel industry, supported by government policy, has become the dominant global supplier. But China has also built excess capacity in industries like steel and cement, and there is a risk that AI infrastructure investment could follow a similar pattern if it is not carefully calibrated to actual demand.
What the Second Batch Signals for 2026
The release of the second batch of major projects in April, relatively early in the fiscal year, suggests that the NDRC is moving quickly to deploy the ultra-long-term treasury bond proceeds authorized in the 2026 budget. The inclusion of AI infrastructure in this batch, alongside the State Council’s April 20 directive on AI for grid transformation, indicates that AI is being treated as a cross-cutting infrastructure priority rather than a sector-specific investment. For companies in the AI infrastructure supply chain, including data center operators, AI chip manufacturers, network equipment suppliers, and cooling system providers, the NDRC’s funding commitment provides a degree of demand visibility that supports investment planning. The EastFrontier coverage of China’s AI supply chain dominance has documented how Chinese component manufacturers have been scaling production in anticipation of sustained AI infrastructure demand. The NDRC’s second project batch confirms that this demand will be supported by government funding and private investment.