‘AI accountability agenda’: US senator unveils package of bills to curb tech’s harms

Scientists are exploring new algorithms, hardware and computing methods to lower AI's power demands. Strategic siting of datacenters and other steps to increase green energy use are also key.

Study warns AI datacenters are vulnerable to the climate hazards that their global greenhouse gas emissions bolster Amid rising concern that the artificial intelligence boom is fueling the climate crisis, a new report has found that nearly 80% of datacenters are also exposed to extreme climate hazards, including flooding, extreme winds and wildfires. Those impacts are leaving the infrastructure vulnerable to disrupted operations, increased time offline and inflated insurance and repair costs, the research from climate risk analytics firm First Street shows. Continue reading...

Measure expected to pass next week represents major rebuke to big tech as local disquiet over AI boom grows Seattle’s city government is on the verge of passing a year-long ban on the construction of new datacenters, the largest city yet in the US to consider such a moratorium as nationwide backlash grows. Four companies sought to build five large datacenters in areas serviced by Seattle’s public utility; if approved, they would have consumed approximately a third of the city’s current daily demand for electricity. Continue reading...

While many US city councils have passed moratoriums, Monterey Park is first where residents have voted on a ban Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Residents in Monterey Park, California, became the first in the US to vote on a permanent ban on datacenters on Tuesday, and early results indicate a resounding victory for the prohibition. While many cities and counties have already passed temporary or indefinite moratoriums via their local governments, Monterey Park would be the first to do so through a ballot initiative. Continue reading...

Janet Mills says moratorium would’ve been ‘appropriate’ if it didn’t interfere with ongoing datacenter project in Maine The Democratic governor of Maine on Friday vetoed a bill that would have made it the first US state to impose a moratorium on large new datacenters, even as local opposition to the electricity-hungry facilities grows. The decision reflects the difficult trade-off facing political leaders, who must weigh the impact of datacenters on the environment and household energy bills against the millions of dollars in investment and tax revenue they can bring. Continue reading...