COMMENTARY:
For the past couple of years, I have followed very closely the AI industry, and specifically the proliferation of data centers (DCs) throughout the U.S. Using AI, I discovered that with between 4,000 to 5,400 DCs, the U.S. has the most DCs, representing 40 to 45 percent of the total DCs in the world, “more than the top 14 countries combined”. The U.S. is followed by Germany (500 to 530), the United Kingdom (500 to 525), China (370 to 450), and Canada (380 to 430). The proliferation of new DCs continues as new projects are announced, not only in the U.S., but throughout the world.
Despite their proliferation, DC projects have become highly controversial, with supporters touting the huge investments these projects bring, the welcome tax collection, along with high-paying jobs. Detractors cite the amount of water used to build the centers and cool the servers. There are also concerns about the amount of power that DCs use and the emissions generated. I have even read about complaints ranchers/farmers have made about DCs “stealing” their land. Concerns also surround the effect of AI on children and teenagers. In many cases the lack of transparency and information about data center projects has been brought up.
All of these are concerns that the general public and DCs need to acknowledge, especially in the desert Southwest, where water is a major concern. It is literally the lifeline of humanity that lives there. Nobody wants to see their electricity bills go up if a DC comes to town and spikes the electricity pipeline, nor does anybody want to be near an emissions generating source. Some communities and states have become proactive by passing laws in an attempt to regulate DC projects.
DCs have become the new cause of the not-in-my-backyard movement. They are the new cell phone towers that many people don’t want in their communities. People have the right to be concerned and to ask valid questions about these projects. However, so much misinformation, often intentional, has been spread about DC projects. I recently read an interview with two New Mexico legislative candidates whose district does not encompass a huge data center project that is being built. They were asked by the reporter how the project was going to affect their district. Both responded that the project would have a negative impact on their communities, which were again not even near the project. They were against the project as a matter of course, because that was the correct response in the election season. This reminded me of when the World Trade Organization held a meeting in Seattle in 1999, where hundreds of protesters showed up to cause chaos and protest globalism, which was the cause du jour of that time. Ironically, I noticed that most were wearing clothing and footwear from countries that had exported these items to the U.S. However, the cause meant more to them than the reality of global production sharing.
So many people are against DCs, but many of these people don't realize that they use AI every day for help in everything from medical care to running their businesses. Whenever we look up trivia or research a new recipe, we are using AI that is generated out of DCs. Our nation’s defense system is being bolstered and modernized through the use of AI from DCs that are being used for military purposes. In fact, the military recently announced a nearly 1,400-acre DC project on Fort Bliss in east El Paso, Texas, for military intelligence purposes.
DC projects move fast because the industry is moving fast. AI is the new Industrial Revolution. Aspects of the industry are made up as they are occurring because of the speed of the industry. AI and the proliferation of DCs is the new Wild West, with new laws, guardrails, and applications of technology being created on a daily basis. Although the U.S. is the dominant DC country, we are in competition economically, and from a military standpoint, with nations such as China.
I predict that those who harness AI to their advantage will be the knowledgeable class that creates wealth in the future. Those who shun AI will find themselves struggling. I am forcing my office to integrate AI into more and more of our workflow in order to stay sharp and competitive. Sometimes, I feel like my father, who refused for the longest time to switch from a flip-top phone to a smartphone, probably due to the fear and anxiety of having to learn a new technology.
Don't get me wrong. I live in a community in close proximity to a major DC project. I too am concerned about the major issues. However, I balance these concerns with the fact that our future as a nation will depend largely on AI, and how we stay ahead of nations such as China and Russia in this sense. AI can be compared to the nuclear age, which started in 1945 and rapidly escalated, not only for military purposes, but for energy and science. If we didn't continuously develop the most modern nuclear weapons, we probably would not exist as a country. If nuclear sciences had not been developed, many scientific applications would not exist.
Whether we like it or not, AI and its associative DCs are here to stay. At this point, it is impossible to put the genie back in the bottle. What individuals and communities need to do is educate themselves on AI and on DC projects that are coming to their communities. DCs, on the other hand, must be transparent about resource consumption, what benefits their projects offer to communities, and how economically struggling people can benefit from their presence.
Jerry Pacheco is the president of the Border Industrial Association.
Jerry Pacheco's opinions are his own and do not necessarily reflect the views of KRWG Public Media or NMSU.