Washington: Data center backlash is rising in the United States, with 49pc of registered voters supporting a temporary ban on new construction, according to a Milltown Partners poll shared with Axios.
Milltown Partners surveyed 6,872 registered voters from May 10 to May 20 and reported a 3-percentage-point margin of error. The poll found 38pc would support a data center near their home, while 34pc would oppose one.
Only 16pc of respondents opposed a moratorium on new data centers. Another 27pc neither supported nor opposed it, and 8pc said they did not know.
The survey found most opposition did not come from people living near data centers. Only 8pc of opponents said they knew of one or more data centers near their home, according to Milltown Partners.
Pew Research Center reported in April that proximity to an existing or planned data center had limited effect on public views. Pew also said more than 1,500 new data centers were in development across the United States, with most planned in rural areas.
Pew found 67pc of planned data centers were headed to rural locations, while 87pc of existing data centers were in urban areas, based on Data Center Map information accessed on February 19.
Milltown Partners researcher Tom Brookes told Axios the AI transition was arriving while Americans already felt “angry, insecure and pessimistic.” Stanford Graduate School of Business professor Andy Hall warned that AI-linked job losses could fuel a populist backlash, according to Axios.
Read: Stratos AI Data Center To Shrink After Utah Uproar
Axios reported that Genesis AI co-founder and CEO Zhou Xian said companies building large data centers face a severe labor shortage. Genesis AI has introduced Eno, a non-humanoid robot designed for industrial and home use
