Elon Musk’s AI company, xAI, is facing a potential lawsuit for using gas turbines at its “Colossus” data center in Memphis, Tennessee, which are allegedly causing air pollution. The controversy comes amid a race among tech firms to rapidly expand their AI infrastructure.
According to the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC), xAI has installed at least 35 natural gas combustion turbines without obtaining the necessary construction or operating permits, in violation of the U.S. Clean Air Act. These turbines are reportedly emitting harmful pollutants, including nitrogen oxides and formaldehyde.
The planned legal action is being pursued on behalf of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the oldest civil rights organization in the U.S. SELC claims that xAI failed to implement essential pollution control technologies such as selective catalytic reduction and ignored multiple formal requests from local health authorities to comply with environmental laws.
The Colossus data center is located near Boxtown, a predominantly Black community in South Memphis, which already suffers from poor air quality due to surrounding industrial activity. The NAACP has called the situation a case of environmental racism and pledged to take strong action to protect local residents.
The organization is seeking injunctive relief, civil penalties, and legal costs. xAI has yet to issue a public statement regarding the allegations.
Despite the backlash, xAI is continuing to expand. The company is currently building a larger data facility, Colossus 2, in Memphis, expected to require at least 1 gigawatt of power.
Demand for data centers is soaring globally due to the rise of cloud computing and artificial intelligence. The U.S. Department of Energy projects that energy use by data centers could double or triple by 2028. A report by McKinsey estimates the sector will require $6.7 trillion in global investment by 2030.
Tech giants like Amazon are also ramping up infrastructure, recently signing a deal to power its AI data centers in Pennsylvania with nuclear energy through 2042, while planning to invest over $13 billion in AI and cloud infrastructure in Australia.
