Opposition to AI data centers rises, US$68 billion in projects have been put on hold

Abstract:

According to Bloomberg,

Opposition to data centers continues to grow across the United States.

Microsoft and Amazon data centers in Virginia

Currently, communities across the United States are pushing for moratoriums on new data centers, often taking action before developers can apply for relevant permits. Data Center Watch said in a report provided to Bloomberg on Monday that about 30 state legislatures in the United States have proposed or passed relevant regulations involving issues such as data center siting, power and water use.

The study quantifies growing concerns about the rapid expansion of AI. This expansion is reflected both in new computing clusters and in the increasing penetration of AI into daily life. Currently, excluding Hawaii, there are 843 opposition organizations in 49 states across the United States.

“New opposition groups are still emerging, more and more states and local jurisdictions are expressing opposition, and the number of online petition signatures continues to increase.” said Miquel Vila, chief analyst at Data Center Watch. Data Center Watch is a project of AI intelligence company 10a Labs.

As the home of the largest investor in AI facilities, the United States is experiencing a wave of bipartisan opposition to related facilities

So-called "hyperscale cloud service providers" such as Amazon, Meta, Microsoft and Alphabet say they need these data centers to take an advantage in the competition with China and develop AI that may change the world.