US Democrat calls on musk over xAI data center pollution concerns

Elon Musk's xAI under scrutiny again as U.S. House democrates seeks answer over xAI data center pollution Concerns.

U.S. Representative Frank Pallone, the top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, on Wednesday demanded documents and answers from Elon Musk about the ‌environmental and public health impacts of his xAI Colossus data center operations in Tennessee and Mississippi.

Pallone sent a letter to Musk seeking information on turbines used at the Colossus 1 and Colossus 2 artificial intelligence data centers, emissions data, permitting records and communications with government officials.

He also requested analyses related to the facilities' emissions, power consumption and water usage, and asked to arrange a visit to the sites with committee staff.

The New Jersey Democrat said Musk's SpaceX , which owns xAI, had been unwilling to provide sufficient information during a meeting with committee staff last month and accused ‌the company of showing "disregard for the health and well-being of local communities."

The letter follows growing scrutiny of the energy demands and environmental impacts of AI data centers as technology companies race to expand computing capacity.

Reuters reported this month that Musk's AI company xAI had installed 59 natural gas turbines for its Colossus 2 project without securing federal clean-air permits, according to communications between regulators and company representatives.

The probe focuses on xAI's use of dozens of natural gas turbines to power its massive AI supercomputing infrastructure inclusing turbines that local communities and environmental groups note were operated without proper clean-air permits, releasing significant levels of nitrogen oxides and other pollutants near residential areas.

The forum found that the turbines were located near predominantly Black communities and that potential emissions exceeded thresholds that would typically require federal permits.

The inquiry was triggered after committee staff held briefings with major AI companies regarding energy use, with xAI reportedly being the least forthcoming and cooperative.