Here’s what’s on our plate today:

• 🧠 Big Tech’s AI data centers vs angry U.S. communities.

• 🧵 Claude’s new rules, sticky AI pin, looming SpaceX IPO.

• 🧰 Weekend toolkit: test tools for energy, climate, and infrastructure.

• 🗳️ Should local protests slow down AI data-center expansion?

Let’s dive in. No floaties needed…

The Laboratory

Decoding Big Tech’s struggle to expand AI infrastructure in the U.S.

During the Second World War, while soldiers fought on the fronts, another battle was quietly unfolding within the Allied nations. This battle was not being fought by soldiers, but by workers in factories and production units. It was to ensure that the Allies had the industrial might to keep their soldiers well-equipped while maintaining their internal military infrastructure.

In a sense, it was the U.S.'s industrial might that enabled the Allied forces to prevail in Europe and the Pacific.

Since the war, the U.S. industrial superiority has given way to technological superiority, which allows the country to maintain influence around the globe.

In 2026, the U.S. is trying hard to maintain its technological superiority by investing heavily in Artificial Intelligence. And, much like the mid-20th century, having the upper hand in the AI race depends largely on developing and maintaining robust infrastructure that can sustain and accelerate the development of AI models.

From industrial might to AI infrastructure

However, unlike the industrialization of the past, developing AI infrastructure is much more complex.

Recently, Microsoft, one of the leading AI companies in the U.S., unveiled an initiative to curb water usage at its U.S. data centers and limit the impact on the general population from any potential surge in power prices.

The move comes as local communities across the country are voicing concerns about how the power-hungry facilities will affect their utility bills and the use of land, water, and other natural resources in the region.

Microsoft’s attempt to win community trust

Microsoft is promising U.S. communities that its data centers will not raise local electricity or water costs, and that residents will see direct benefits from the company’s investments.

The company says it will pay higher electricity rates to fully cover the power its data centers consume, rather than passing those costs on to households. It has also committed to working with local utilities to expand power supply where needed, rather than straining existing infrastructure.

On water use, Microsoft has pledged to replenish more water than its data centers consume. To add transparency, it will publish detailed, region-by-region data on how much water its U.S. data centers use and how much they replenish.

Beyond utilities, Microsoft says it will invest in local communities by training residents for construction and maintenance jobs at data centers, and by offering AI literacy programs.

In places like Wisconsin, it has backed new electricity pricing structures designed to protect consumers from higher bills linked to data center growth.

Taken together, Microsoft’s pledge is that communities will not subsidize its AI expansion and that local people will gain jobs, skills, and infrastructure improvements instead of higher costs.

The need for placating the locals

In the U.S., politicians and Big Tech have made their intentions clear. The collective aim is to support and implement policies that maximize economic gains, while resisting measures that could slow or restrict the development of AI infrastructure.

In September 2025, a coalition of tech executives and AI companies launched a new group called Leading the Future (LTF), aimed at keeping the U.S. at the forefront of AI.

The organization says it will push a coordinated policy agenda at both the federal and state levels and act as a central hub for the AI industry’s political efforts. The move signals a shift in strategy: instead of relying mainly on think tanks, research papers, and voluntary pledges, the AI sector is now creating its own formal political influence machinery.

When AI ambition collides with local resistance

On the other end of the spectrum are citizens who are unhappy with rising electricity bills and pollution from power plants, which they blame on data centers.

According to a report from The Verge, opposition to new data centers has intensified, with grassroots groups, voters, and local officials pushing developers to be more accountable. These efforts have already delayed or halted projects worth tens of billions of dollars, and the resistance shows no signs of slowing.

According to Data Center Watch analyst Miquel Vila, developers canceled or delayed 20 projects in the second quarter alone after facing local resistance, representing $98 billion in stalled investment. That includes $24.2 billion in blocked projects and $73.7 billion in delayed projects, up from 16 projects stalled between 2023 and early 2024.

The backlash is growing alongside a surge in proposed data centers.

Inventory in North America’s four largest markets, Northern Virginia, Chicago, Atlanta, and Phoenix, rose 43% year over year, according to CBRE.

Adding fuel to the protests is data that suggests that power demand is expected to rise 22% in 2025, with a single high-density AI server rack consuming as much electricity as 80 to 100 homes.

Water use is also substantial, with AI-related infrastructure projected to consume as much water annually as 18.5 million U.S. households by 2028.

The impact of opposition to data centers is not limited to Microsoft. Google, xAI, and Meta are all facing the heat.

The mounting cost of resistance to AI infrastructure

According to The Verge, Google scrapped a planned data center in Indiana after residents raised concerns about water and power use. In Memphis, Elon Musk’s xAI faces potential legal action over pollution, with nitrogen dioxide levels near its facility reportedly jumping 79% since operations began.

Meta, meanwhile, is encountering resistance in Louisiana, where critics argue its massive data center will saddle residents with higher energy costs due to new gas plants built to support it, claims both Meta and the local utility dispute.

At the national level, more than 230 health and environmental groups have called for a moratorium on new data centers, warning that current policies fail to protect communities from higher bills and pollution.

With elections approaching and federal efforts to accelerate AI infrastructure clashing with local concerns, experts expect data center opposition to play an increasingly influential role in shaping future regulation.

Microsoft is also not alone in its pledge to address growing concerns.

Meta reaffirmed in December that it would replenish water sources in regions hosting its data centers, while Amazon pointed to a study it commissioned, claiming its data centers generate more revenue for utilities than they cost to support.

Despite these assurances, local resistance has had real consequences.

A Heatmap Pro analysis published this week found that at least 25 data center projects across the U.S. have been canceled due to community opposition.

The backlash has also drawn in President Donald Trump. Although he pledged to speed up data center construction under his AI Action Plan, he has recently sought to address public anger over rising electricity bills. In a post on Truth Social, Trump said his administration is working with Microsoft and other tech firms to ensure Americans are not forced to shoulder the cost of power.

The commitment from Big Tech then is part of the effort to ensure the U.S. AI efforts are not derailed.

The human cost of winning the AI race

The U.S. today stands at a crossroads. Winning the AI race requires infrastructure on a scale not seen since wartime mobilization. But unlike the factories of the 1940s, data centers cannot be built on patriotic sentiment alone. They require electricity that someone must pay for, water that communities depend on, and land that neighbors must live beside.

Microsoft's pledge, along with similar commitments from Meta and Amazon, represents an acknowledgment that technological ambition cannot outpace public consent. The $98 billion in stalled projects is proof enough that local opposition carries real weight.

In the Second World War, American industry succeeded because workers believed their sacrifices served a shared purpose.

The AI race will demand a similar bargain. Whether Big Tech can convince communities that the benefits are worth the costs will determine not only where data centers are built, but also whether the U.S. can sustain the infrastructure needed to support its AI ambitions.

TL;DR

• Big Tech needs massive new data centers to stay ahead in the AI race—but local communities are pushing back against the costs, water use, and pollution.
  

• Microsoft is promising higher power rates, water replenishment, and local jobs to prove its data centers won’t hike household bills.
  

• Grassroots resistance has already delayed or killed at least $98B worth of U.S. data center projects, with Google, xAI, and Meta all feeling the heat.
  

• The real constraint on U.S. AI dominance isn’t just chips—it’s whether voters will tolerate the power, water, and land costs of building the infrastructure.

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Friday Poll

Weekend To-Do

• Use Electricity Maps to see the real-time carbon intensity of your grid and how much comes from gas, coal, nuclear, or renewables.

• Use Cloudscene’s Data Center Directory to browse actual facilities by country, city, or provider (Microsoft, Amazon, Google, etc.).

• Use a simple time/activity tracker like RescueTime (desktop + mobile) to log how much of your workday now runs through AI tools—chatbots, copilots, image/video generation.

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