People were already tired of rising energy and water costs.
Then the AI revolution took hold.
Responding to growing concerns about how the AI infrastructure buildout would affect communities across the U.S., Microsoft
on Tuesday said it would commit to being a “good neighbor in the communities where we build, own, and operate our datacenters.”
The company said it pledges to reduce the water consumption of its AI infrastructure, replenish more water than it uses, act with greater local transparency, and advocate for public policies that support “sustainable growth.”
Microsoft also said it would not ask for local property tax breaks.
It’s “a commitment to do this work differently than some others and to do it responsibly,” the tech giant said as it worked to shake
a Trump-sized target on its back.
The pressure is now on Microsoft’s peers—Amazon, Google, Meta, OpenAI, etc.—to adopt a similar stance.
The clock is ticking. The biggest Big Tech firms have promised to invest eye-watering amounts in capital expenditures related to AI this year, even more than 2025. Meanwhile residential energy prices near data centers continue to outpace the national average.
—AN 
