Small Towns Are Rising Up Against AI Data Centers

Unless you're living in a shack off the grid, you've probably noticed that artificial intelligence is being shoehorned into every corner of existence, from kitchens to doctors officers to alarm clocks. And as AI creeps further into our lives, so do the hulking data centers that power it — but not everyone's stoked about their new neighbors. The facilities working behind the scene to fuel the AI revolution are bulky, noisy, and hog resources like electricity at a staggering scale. Data centers have been blamed for placing a huge burden on local electrical grids and water tables that were only designed for small-town homes, not state-of-the-art industrial facilities. That being the case, it's no surprise that local opposition to data centers is growing rapidly in rural areas of states like Indiana, Virginia, Missouri, and Illinois, where AI developers are flocking to lock down cheap land and generous tax breaks. And as local organizers successfully repel the monstrous sites, their bat ... Read full article.