The resistance to AI data centers is growing, forming a genuinely grass roots movement made up of people from all political stripes. I talked to Saul Levin about it a couple of days ago, hoping to clarify some of the issues involved so we can feel more empowered to take effective action.
The issue here is not anti-technology. Rather, it’s a repudiation of the overreach by huge tech companies running roughshod over communities all over America. Their AI data center business model is all about them and no one else, as they act with careless abandon towards the safety, health, economic, and environmental consequences for people who live, work, and raise their children in the vicinity of the centers.
It doesn’t have to be this way.
We can pause, have a moratorium, and design the unfoldment of AI - something we all know cannot and will not be stopped - in a way that is safe, just, and respectful of the needs of people, animals, and the earth itself. That this should be considered too much to ask is a problem. That huge corporate forces should be able to do whatever they want, whenever they want, however they want, extracting and exploiting both people and earth for their own financial gain, is more than a problem. It is a threat to our way of life, and potentially to life itself.
I hope my conversation with Saul is helpful to you, as it was to me. This is not a problem that is going away, and each of us can be part of the solution. It’s important that the Tech Bros as well as the President know how we the people feel. President Trump raves about the value of AI data centers but is starting to feel the resistance. The current alliance between government and Big Tech doesn’t like things like pesky protesters, but if we don’t complain now then we won’t be able to complain later.
We will democratize this process or we will all pay a price.
The fight Against AI Data Centers Isn’t Just About Tech – It’s About Democracy (Levin’s article in The Guardian)
The Hum Pod (Levin’s Podcast)
The Hum Pod on Instagram
