Utah Residents Seek Referendum to Block $100B AI Data Center
Supporters say the 40,000-acre campus will create 2,000 jobs, while critics warn it could strain water supplies and drive emissions higher.
- Shark Tank investor Kevin O'Leary is pushing back against public opposition to his Stratos data center project in Box Elder County, Utah, which received approval last month.
- Military Installation Development Authority executive director Paul Morris confirmed the site will rely on natural gas, scaling to 9 gigawatts of power compared with Utah's 4 gigawatts of average annual consumption.
- Citing threats to the shrinking Great Salt Lake, protesters gathered with signs reading "People before profits" to express concerns over local resource strain.
- Dismissing opposition as manufactured, Leary claimed most protesters were outsiders and emphasized that "sustainability is at the heart of what we do" through improved technology.
- The conflict illustrates rising friction between AI infrastructure expansion and community resistance, as similar projects in Alberta and Utah face growing scrutiny over environmental impacts.
62 Articles
62 Articles
Why Utah residents are protesting a massive AI data center project backed by Kevin O’Leary
A group of rural Utah residents wants a chance to vote in November to oppose a massive AI data center development — the latest example of Americans resisting new data center projects over fears they’ll disrupt the environment and their communities.
Kevin O'Leary defends his Utah data center project: 'Think about the number of jobs'
Kevin O'Leary's data center campus in northwest Utah is facing resistance from the community where it's being built.Richard Shotwell/Invision/APKevin O'Leary says people have misconceptions about what data centers are.O'Leary is building a data center in Utah despite community resistance.Data center development has become a serious issue for many American communities.Many Americans don't like the AI data centers popping up in their communities, …
Expect the data center backlash to get worse
In a recent meeting of the Box Elder County Commission in Tremonton, Utah, a man yelled at the cloud. "It's false. This is not real information," shouted an attendee at the assembled commissioners, who were considering a massive new data center project backed by celebrity billionaire Kevin O'Leary, in a video posted to X by progressive group More Perfect Union. Kevin O'Leary's massive data center was approved by a county commission in Utah la…
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