DOJ claims xAI’s unpermitted gas turbines are a matter of ‘national, economic, and energy security’

The Department of Justice on Monday sided with xAI in a lawsuit that sought to stop the company’s use of dozens of unpermitted natural gas turbines near its Memphis data centers, according to a Wired.

The DoJ said if the NAACP, which filed the lawsuit in April, prevails, the result would undermine “American national, economic, and energy security by seeking to shut off the power supply for artificial-intelligence innovation that supports the Department of War’s military operations.”

The memorandum filed by the Justice Department said that Grok is one of four AI models that support “mission-critical operations,” such as its recent strikes in Iran.

The NAACP started telegraphing its intent to sue xAI last June, seeking to end the company’s practice of using “mobile” gas turbines at its Colossus and Colossus 2 data centers. Those efforts failed, and Elon Musk’s AI company has since added more turbines, bringing the total to 57.

Because the turbines have remained on trailers, xAI claims that they are exempt from Mississippi air pollution regulations for one year. The Southern Environmental Law Center, which filed the lawsuit on behalf of the NAACP, says that the company’s use still violates federal law, which states that trailer-mounted turbines can be considered stationary and are therefore subject to regulation.

The NAACP has said that the region, already one of the most polluted in the country, has suffered worse air quality since xAI’s data centers went online.

Since last year, the number of turbines at the data centers have more than doubled, resulting in a corresponding increase in three major air pollutants: PM2.5, formaldehyde, and oxides of nitrogen (NOx). All three have been linked to asthma and cardiovascular disease. Formaldehyde exposure increases the risk of cancer, and PM2.5 has been implicated in a range of ailments, from stroke to Alzheimer’s disease.

The company, which is now a division of SpaceX, is likely to buy more generators in the coming months or years. In SpaceX’s IPO filing, the company said that it will buy another $2.8 billion worth of gas turbines to power its AI data centers over the next three years. Of that, at least $2 billion are earmarked for “mobile gas turbines.”

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Tim De Chant is a senior climate reporter at TechCrunch. He has written for a wide range of publications, including Wired magazine, the Chicago Tribune, Ars Technica, The Wire China, and NOVA Next, where he was founding editor.

De Chant is also a lecturer in MIT’s Graduate Program in Science Writing, and he was awarded a Knight Science Journalism Fellowship at MIT in 2018, during which time he studied climate technologies and explored new business models for journalism. He received his PhD in environmental science, policy, and management from the University of California, Berkeley, and his BA degree in environmental studies, English, and biology from St. Olaf College.

You can contact or verify outreach from Tim by emailing [email protected].

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