Americans would rather have a nuclear plant in their backyard than a datacenter

AI and the bit barns that power it have developed a serious PR problem

The majority of Americans are now opposed to datacentersbeing built in their area, many strongly opposed, pointing to tough timesahead for site developers.

A Gallupsurvey found more than 70 percent of respondents indicate they would beagainst the construction of an AI datacenter in their neighboorhood, with almost half(48 percent) saying they were strongly opposed. Only 27 percent were in favor.

The polling shows how quickly AI server farms have become politically toxic in the US, not helped by stories about their effects on energybills, slurping up water supplies, and creating air and noise pollution intheir vicinity.

To highlight this, Gallup found that more US residents areopposed to massive data halls than to having a nuclear power plant in theirbackyard: 53 percent of Americans oppose building a nuclear energy site nearby,compared with the 71 percent against datacenter...

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