A new Gallup survey published on Wednesday found most Americans oppose building AI data centers in their local area, highlighting growing public resistance as technology companies rapidly expand artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Gallup said 71% of Americans oppose AI data centers nearby, including 48% who are strongly opposed. Opposition to AI data centers was also significantly higher than opposition to nearby nuclear power plants, which stood at 53%. Respondents cited concerns around electricity use, water consumption, pollution, noise and rising utility bills.
The survey also found opposition was strongest among Americans worried about environmental quality. Democrats were more likely than Republicans to strongly oppose nearby data centers, while women registered higher levels of strong opposition than men.
Buildout Surge
The findings come as major technology companies accelerate spending on AI infrastructure and data center construction.
Earlier this year, Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) and Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META) helped push U.S. data center construction to a record $45.1 billion, surpassing office construction for the first time.
The Kobeissi Letter noted that data center construction has surged 228% since OpenAI launched ChatGPT in late 2022, reflecting how AI demand is reshaping commercial real estate and infrastructure investment.
At the same time, Counterpoint Research estimated the global data center CPU market could expand to roughly $80 billion by 2028 as AI workloads increasingly shift toward inference and real-time processing.
That trend is intensifying competition among Intel (NASDAQ: INTC), Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ: AMD) and Arm Holdings (NASDAQ: ARM), while also driving advanced manufacturing demand for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (NYSE: TSM).
Backlash Grows
The rapid expansion is also creating political and community resistance.
Last month, Maine Gov. Janet Mills vetoed the nation's first proposed statewide moratorium on new data center construction, though the state still moved toward studying the sector's impact on infrastructure and energy systems.
Meanwhile, CEO Satya Nadella recently described Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT)'s Wisconsin facility as the "world's most powerful AI datacenter" as the company accelerates its multibillion-dollar global expansion strategy.
Goldman Sachs estimates global data center electricity demand could rise 220% by 2030, underscoring the growing tension between AI expansion and local environmental concerns.