The subject of the rapid growth of AI technology, its associated data centers, and how they will source the electricity required to meet their massive power needs has been one of the hottest topics of discussion in the energy space for a year now.
While many, like me, have commented at length about the logistics and technical issues involved in this rapidly expanding growth industry, few have thought about the role crass politics and radical activism will both inevitably play.
In recent weeks, a veritable poster child example of how cynical – and often dishonest – activism can intervene in and threaten to supersede these logistical and technical matters has arisen in Memphis, Tenn. There, xAI, the tech company responsible for the creation and maintenance of the Grok AI tool featured at Elon Musk-owned X, operates a major datacenter.
While waiting to be connected to the regional power grid managed by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), xAI has obtained its own behind-the-meter electricity from a suite of portable natural gas generators.
From a logistical and technical standpoint, the use of clean and reliable gas generation presents a perfectly reasonable solution to an increasingly common problem, as queues for grid interconnections across the country continue to expand. But, for conflict groups, it presents an opening to raise money based on cynical – and too often false – claims related to climate change, climate justice, and equity.
The City of Memphis government and xAI have been slammed in recent weeks with fright narratives mounted by the Southern Environmental Law Center(SELC) and other conflict groups, which, if taken seriously, would lead one to believe an environmental catastrophe is happening.
But, as both Memphis Mayor Paul Young and local power provider MLGW have demonstrated, most of the claims have no basis in reality.
In a powerful guest column published June 12 by Memphis’ Commercial Appeal newspaper, Mayor Young refuted point-by-point some of the most blatant false claims being made by the project’s opponents, saying he would continue “choosing facts over fear, solutions over soundbites, and progress over performative outrage.”
Mayor Young backed up his position that the xAI solution is safe and clean by commissioning an emissions study by an independent firm. The study, released on June 24, finds that no dangerous levels of any pollutants could be measured. Predictably, SELC responded with a classic misdirection, slamming the study for failing to test for ozone. The problem there is that the study measured volatile organic compounds, nitrogen dioxide, and other pollutants that actually create ozone.
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For its own part, MLGW sent a letter to the NAACP, which has been working in concert with the SELC, responding to claims the group made in a letter dated May 25, 2025. “You have accused this utility of insidious conduct and accused our Board of Commissioners of violating open meetings laws, all of which are patently false,” MLGW’s letter says, adding, “While we believe the NAACP has genuine concerns about xAI, we should have been given the courtesy of direct communication from you. Taking this tone and making baseless, inflammatory claims about MLGW was unnecessary and frankly beneath your organization.”
It is key to note here that MLGW does provide 150 MW of electricity to xAI’s site, which previously housed an Electrolux facility that was closed down. But xAI’s power needs for Unit 1 of its facility are significantly larger than that, and its needs for 24/7 power generation cannot be met using wind or solar facilities. Thus, the company devised a low-emission, environmentally responsible solution available to it by working in concert with local officials and regulators to secure the natural gas turbines. There is nothing illegal or even careless about it.
What we see taking place in Memphis is a preview of what the future is going to increasingly look like as AI and other big tech advancements, along with their associated, power-hungry data centers, continue their rapid expansion. Climate alarmists and conflict groups like the SELC will always work to exploit these situations for their own fundraising efforts, but, in the end, economic and energy reality are going to consistently prevail over divisive – and too often, false – narratives.
David Blackmon is an energy writer and consultant based in Texas. He spent 40 years in the oil and gas business, where he specialized in public policy and communications.
The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller News Foundation.
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