Trump wants tech giants to pay Americans to accept massive AI data centers as public backlash grows

Trump wants tech giants to pay Americans to accept massive AI data centers as public backlash grows Writing on Truth Social Wednesday, Trump said developers could win over skeptical residents by sharing the facilities' financial benefits - Bookmark - CommentsGo to comments Become an Independent member to bookmark this article Already a member? Log in President Donald Trump has suggested that technology companies should pay communities hosting massive AI data centers as more Americans worry about their impact on electricity bills and water supplies. Writing on Truth Social Wednesday, Trump said developers could win over skeptical residents by sharing the facilities' financial benefits. "I have watched the process closely, and data centers that were highly unpopular in a certain area, have become extremely popular when a financial deal is struck," he wrote. Trump also reiterated his demand that companies building large data centers generate their own electricity and supply any surplus to local communities or the power grid. The president, whose administration has championed rapid AI expansion to compete with China, previously argued that technology companies should build dedicated power plants to prevent household electricity bills from rising. Americans increasingly worried about AI's environmental impact The comments come as a new Associated Press-NORC poll, conducted with the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago, found that 53 percent of Americans are extremely or very concerned about AI's environmental consequences, up from 41 percent last year. Roughly six in 10 Americans support restrictions on new data center construction, including majorities of Democrats and Republicans. Concerns are particularly acute over electricity consumption and water supplies, especially as developers increasingly target rural communities. While 87 percent of existing US data centers are in urban areas, most planned facilities are in rural locations, according to Pew Research Center. "I think that decisions are being made for the company, not for the community that they're being built in," said Nancy Antunes, a 60-year-old Massachusetts resident. Researchers warn that the facilities could place enormous pressure on local infrastructure. Data centers could account for as much as 11.8 percent of US electricity consumption by 2030, according to Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. "We're talking about building electric infrastructure on a scale of entire cities, or in some cases, entire states just to serve one data center," said Erik Nordman of Michigan State University. About two-thirds of Americans support requiring data centers to use clean energy, including 80 percent of Democrats and 56 percent of Republicans. Tech industry defends economic benefits Industry representatives argue that data centers generate investment, construction jobs and other economic opportunities. "The data center industry provides significant, tangible benefits that are currently being felt in localities across the country," said Dan Diorio, an executive vice president at the Data Center Coalition. However, only about one in five Americans believes the facilities are highly beneficial for local job creation, according to the poll. Other technology leaders have floated proposals to share the benefits of the AI boom. Anthropic recently announced plans to allocate five percent of its shares to a fund supporting the public good, while Elon Musk has proposed giving Americans a stake in SpaceX. For many residents, the question remains whether the economic rewards of AI expansion will outweigh its environmental costs. "We're undertaking a massive experiment in real time, and I don't think there'll be any putting the milk back in the bottle," said Michael Greenstone, director of the University of Chicago's Energy Policy Institute. Join our commenting forum Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies Comments