Elon Musk's artificial intelligence startup xAI plans to continue using 15 gas turbines to power its "Colossus" supercomputer in Memphis, Tennessee. The turbines will be used continuously from June 2025 to June 2030, according to an operating license issued by the Shelby County Health Department.
News outlet Commercial Appeal, which obtained the documents, observed that environmental concerns have arisen because the 20-year-old turbines emit hazardous air pollutants (HAPs), including formaldehyde, in excess of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's limit of 10 tons per year from a single source. (The facility’s operating permit self-reported that each turbine emits 11.51 tons of HAP per year, according to the report).
Eric Hilt, a spokesman for the Southern Environmental Law Center, a large nonprofit environmental group, said the turbines have been operating since the summer of 2024 but were not announced to the public or subject to public scrutiny, and the permits did not account for those emissions.
"This is yet another example of the company not being transparent with the community or local leaders," Shildt told The Commercial Appeal.
The health department told the outlet that the license has not yet been approved and "there is no firm timeline for approval."