The NAACP and environmental groups say Musk’s xAI company is exploiting regulatory loopholes to power its massive AI supercomputers — while worsening smog and health risks for Black neighborhoods in Mississippi and Tennessee.
For months, the NAACP and a coalition of environmental justice groups have accused Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company of poisoning Black communities in North Mississippi and Memphis with an improvised power plant fueled by unpermitted gas turbines. Now, even after the groups sued him, alleging violations of the Clean Air Act, Musk appears to be escalating the fight.
The billionaire recently added six more gas-powered turbines to the sprawling xAI data center operation, and civil rights and environmental advocates are racing to prevent the pollution from becoming permanent.
LEARN MORE: Elon Musk’s AI Empire Accused of Polluting Black Communities
The NAACP, represented by Earthjustice and the Southern Environmental Law Center, the NAACP asked a federal court earlier this month to immediately shut them down.
Increasing Pollution
Ben Grillot, a senior attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center, said in a statement that the court must act “in order to protect communities in North Mississippi and Memphis from the tech company’s harmful pollution.”
Sitting just across the state line from Memphis, the ad hoc power plant supplies power to t Colossus 1 and Colossus 2, a massive pair of supercomputers that Musk’s xAI company has built in the area. The facilities both run and train Grok, Musk’s entry in the crowded AI chatbot field.
We will not stand by and idly watch as the Clean Air Act is ignored.Abre’ Conner, NAACP director of environmental and climate justice
The new turbines bring the total number operating there from 27 to 33, and the additions are some of the largest in use at the facility, capable of generating even more air pollution.
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