After operating and growing mostly under the radar for the last few years, the subject of data centers has popped up to become one of the most contentious issues of our times. The reasons are manyfold, but data centers are at the intersection of many societal triggers, including the growth of AI, the rising costs for electricity, the threat to our water supplies, the huge sums of money involved and the limited comprehension of how regular people will benefit. Thus far, big tech has mostly had a free reign in building out its AI infrastructure on a massive scale, which includes data centers at its heart. But we’re seeing signs of pushback.

Data centers are physical facilities that companies (and governments) use to house, process and distribute massive amounts of digital data and critical software applications. At the heart of a data center is a server farm where the computing hardware is stored. Think of a data center as a factory of the internet. It is the “cloud” tech marketers speak of, where everything is stored from websites to photos to all your emails, your videos, your digital documents, government records, scientific research and everyone’s texts, presentations and voicemails. Everything digital is stored somewhere — and this is where — in data centers around the world. They have a lot of wires, cables, server machines and massive cooling systems, all inside a gigantic warehouse-looking facility, usually requiring only a few people to maintain once built.

The issue of data centers captured my attention after hearing about an enormous project proposed in Utah. Twice the size of Manhattan, it would be built in a mostly uninhabited valley in the desert and consume more electricity than that used by all the rest of the state combined. In a state that severely restricts individual homeowners’ use of water, this project will be a serious water-guzzling project. And what water is used for cooling will become polluted from the use of anti-freeze and anti-rust additives. While there will be up to 700 permanent jobs created, plus thousands of construction jobs (often brought in from other states) and tax revenues for the very rural county, local tax incentives will be given. Kevin O’Leary, the prime investor in the Utah project and Shark Tank celebrity, said the quiet part out loud when he claimed that if he’s not given a tax incentive, ‘“I can build it in Texas. I can build it in Jacksonville [or] Mississippi … welcome to America!” Um, PR clean up in aisle four!

Only a few years ago a search inquiry on Google, for example, would simply return data associated with your question or search. Today, Google’s free AI search feeds you a summary of datapoints, presented as “fact,” gleaned from the entirety of the digital universe. Paid versions prioritize data privacy and offer superior reliability during peak times. AI also serves data to you in ways it thinks you would like it presented to you; it learns your preferences and prejudices. In order for AI to accomplish this, computer bots essentially record and review everyone’s digital data all the time. Another word for this is mass surveillance.

AI is the primary driver behind the fast expansion of global data center capacity — it needs endless processing power and storage. But another big driver of data centers is cryptocurrency mining, a rapidly growing user of data center infrastructure with electricity consumption that rivals or exceeds that of many medium-sized nations. Crypto is said to be the currency of choice among investors, thieves and dark money types. It’s unsurprisingly in high demand with today’s squalid social mores.

Both AI and crypto need to continuously be fed enormous amounts of electricity — far more than existing power grids can provide. Data centers are increasingly building their own electric capacity as well, proposing the construction of nuclear power plants and massive solar and wind farms. With this new unquenchable thirst for energy, prior plans to decommission coal, gas and oil plants are on hold because every kilowatt of electricity is in demand now. This obviously impacts concerns about climate change. And for electricity consumers, we’re seeing rising electricity rates, not just in New York, but across the nation.

When asked about data centers in the Hudson Valley, Réal Hamilton-Romeo, Central Hudson’s director of corporate communications, said that “while some data centers require significant, concentrated electric load and can drive the need for new infrastructure, smaller and well-sited facilities can often be integrated into existing capacity with minimal disruption. In Central Hudson’s system, there are areas where available capacity can accommodate this type of growth, and when projects are thoughtfully located, they could improve system reliability and can provide affordability benefits for all electric customers.”

So, our local Hudson Valley grid system can accommodate some of the capacity needs of new tech, but large projects could result in real disruption — including rises in electricity costs — and likely require new generation plants. And as you may recall, our grid system is open, between companies and states. So, when demand peaks for data centers in one territory, the extra electricity is drawn from a wider set of sources, whether that territory has data centers or not. Meaning this is a systemic issue, not a local one.

As sure as the sun rises, we can anticipate that Wall Street investors will turn up the heat and expect more from utilities. They will push them to support more data centers in their grid and call for more generation capacity, because it will grow their revenues and stock value. But before any readers come to an “ah ha” moment and call for a state takeover of Central Hudson, a fun fact is, government is also behind the rapid construction of data centers, and in some cases it’s steamrolling citizens to get its way.

Ulster County currently has no inquiries or active applications for data centers, as per county spokesperson Amberly Jane Campbell. But there are quite a few proposed and in the works in the Valley and further upstate. The Hudson Valley is already a major hub for data centers and high-performance computing, driven by "low-latency connections" to New York City and expanding AI infrastructure. “Low-latency” is a technical way of saying the closer the data is to data users, the better because it’s faster. Speed in AI is essential. Naturally, the Hudson Valley is an attractive location given its proximity to 40 million highly plugged-in people along the Northeast Corridor. And of course, the need for electricity to support those data centers is right behind it. Overall, New York is a top state in having data centers, with Texas and Virginia leading the pack.

In the rush to build data centers, we shouldn’t overlook the fact that computer chips and technology will get smaller and smaller and more efficient. In the future, might the world be left with thousands of hulking, empty iPark 87-like structures with limited repurpose potential? Are they planning for that? I suspect some Kingstonians may have some insights into that.

The logic supporting data centers is wrapped in the idea of momentum and inevitability — it’s happening and growing. We feel defenseless against this oncoming massive wave of tech and social dislocation. Yes, it can add tax revenue to local governments, and does create some jobs, often well-paying. And naturally they create wealth for some, and can create localized business energy in support of the data centers. Of course, we are getting the tremendous benefits of using AI all the time. But AI is also used to create “slop” - low-effort, low-quality digital content mass produced using generative AI tools. AI increasingly blurs the lines between real and fake, further deepening society’s cynicism, if not inducing mass hallucinations.

County Executive Jen Metzger and others have highlighted the environmental hazard of big data and their centers (big carbon polluters due to using so much fossil fuels). And growing numbers of people across the nation are beginning to coalesce around a general “anti-AI and big tech” attitude. More and more people are resisting the rush to build AI, crypto, data centers and server farms. Are we witnessing a rebellion against overly intelligent technology, like the “Butlerian Jihad” forecast in the sci-fi book and film “Dune”? Time will tell.

More and more of us apparently are seeing new technology through the lens of lost jobs and the diminishment of humanity. Tech advancements are increasingly seen as less an opportunity and more of a threat. Disturbingly, we’re learning of people tossing Molotov cocktails at the homes of AI tech barons and committing other violent acts in expression of tech hostility. The situation is getting worrisome. No one wants violence to come out of this. So perhaps we should take a time out.

In New York, there are various bills floating in Albany to put a three-year moratorium on the construction of more data centers. It proposes a pause until more is understood about their implications and its rollout is better planned. State Sen. Hinchey and Assemblymember Shrestha both support these efforts. While I am unsure of the exact duration of such a pause, I support this. It’s time we insist the tech industry come clean with us on the clear and present benefits of absorbing so much of our electricity, water, space and potentially our jobs for the creation of this new world. It is our society, our jobs, our lives that are on the line. We, in the largest sense of the word, are owed the small consideration of being able to take some time to get our collective heads around this complicated issue. Let’s hold our leaders to account to spend this time-out wisely in understanding and crafting a plan that is most equitable all around.

Right now, It’s time for a pause on more data centers in New York.

Raleigh Green is a local business owner specializing in marketing communications consulting and services. If you enjoy this column, please "like" it on social media and share online.