Data center backlash centers on electricity not tech
big tech sees data center backlash as culture war but it's really about electricity usage and grid strain affecting local communities.
the data center backlash in the us, particularly in areas like ashburn, virginia, is often misattributed to a culture war against big tech. however, the primary concern is the enormous appetite for electricity. data centers can be powered by connecting to the grid or generating electricity onsite. in virginia, most data centers are connected to the grid, which is largely powered by natural gas. the average data center in this area has a power capacity of 54 megawatts, surpassing the power draw of the denver international airport. recent protests have led to new rules requiring data centers to pay for new transmission lines and potentially face cutoffs from grid power during peak demand. elsewhere, companies are building massive data centers in rural areas with no grid infrastructure, leading to the use of natural-gas-powered turbines and diesel generators. for example, anthropic has reportedly agreed to pay $3.4 billion for gas turbines.