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 Wired. The DOJ argued that if the NAACP, which filed the lawsuit in April, prevails, it would undermine American national, economic, and energy security by potentially cutting off power for AI innovation that supports military operations. The memorandum filed by the Justice Department stated that Grok is one of four AI models that support mission-critical operations, such as its recent strikes in Iran.
The NAACP began planning to sue xAI last June, seeking to end the company’s use of 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. xAI claims the turbines, which remain on trailers, 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 the company’s use still violates federal law, which considers trailer-mounted turbines as stationary and therefore subject to regulation.
The NAACP has stated that the region, already one of the most polluted in the country, has seen worsened air quality since xAI’s data centers went online. Since last year, the number of turbines at the data centers has more than doubled, leading to a corresponding rise 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 cancer risk, and PM2.5 has been implicated in conditions ranging from stroke to Alzheimer’s disease.
Source: techcrunch
