The Patriot Post® · Who's Afraid of Data Centers?

Data centers will be a crucial factor in the ongoing battle for artificial intelligence (AI) dominance. However, the American people, by and large, do not want data centers anywhere near them.

They are deeply concerned about the effects data centers might have on water supply, electricity, and noise, while also grappling with greater distrust of AI as a threat to jobs and a potential source of societal devastation.

For AI companies, their eagerness to get data centers underway and pour money into communities has overtaken communities’ comfort level with the technology.

Companies are going out of their way to engage the community, work with local leaders, take accountability, provide jobs, and give back through grants. According to The Wall Street Journal, last month, OpenAI hosted an open house concerning a forthcoming data center in Georgia. “In announcing the project,” the Journal says, “the company pledged to invest $80 million in the community and provide as much as $71 million in coding credits to local students.”

Other companies have promised new jobs for blue-collar workers, with free training to build and operate the centers. However, new jobs, new opportunities, and new cash flows are not enough to convince some rural communities. State governments have picked up on this reluctance and are stepping in to stick up for their constituents.

A Gallup poll from May found that 71% of Americans say “not in my backyard” to data centers. The public’s concerns are grounded in legitimacy. The abstract idea that AI might replace a swath of human jobs is becoming a more concrete reality, and electricity bills have jumped as new data centers come online. However, this level of animosity and skepticism seems engineered.

Our Michael Swartz recently pointed out that much of the panic about data centers (particularly regarding environmental concerns and electricity costs) is misinformation. “The average American would likely object to the newfangled data centers, concerned over rising electricity costs and sucking up millions of gallons of water,” he explained. “There are other concerns, too, from noise to cattle health. Unfortunately, most of what they believe comes from hype and misinformation, for data centers have been operating for the last 20 years or so.”

We’ve had data centers since the beginning of the Internet age. The only thing that’s changed is that AI requires more of them. Perhaps people weren’t aware that they already existed?

It raises the question: How much of this backlash against AI in general and data centers in particular is due to media influence? And how much of that influence is due to psyops from bad actors?

Communist China in particular has a strong motive to push misinformation about data centers to stymie the U.S.‘s progress in the AI race. Then there are the Luddites and anarchists who are likewise happy to obstruct our progress. Their fearmongering benefits political malcontents and opportunists who see it as an easy political platform.

Data centers, fairly or not, are unpopular, and the companies who need them are struggling to turn the tide of discontent. There is a constructive way forward, and Texas Governor Greg Abbott has a good model for pursuing it. He has stipulated that AI companies must comply with quality standards for water, electricity, and community quality of life in the areas where they settle.

Politicians and communities should take a strong stand on regulations and community and environmental protections, and companies should still be allowed to build the infrastructure needed to support this new technology. It’s more than just jobs at stake; national security is also at risk should China win the tech race.