Silicon Valley’s Very Bad Night
The Atlantic · Matteo Wong ·
America has made its feelings about data centers crystal clear.
America has made its feelings about data centers crystal clear.
For years, public anxiety and frustration over AI have been mounting. More than 80 percent of Americans think the technology is moving too quickly, and more than 70 percent oppose data-center construction in their area. Meanwhile, tech companies have spent hundreds of millions of dollars on this election to combat regulations and candidates they deem a threat. Yesterday, months of skirmishes between these two political forces culminated, for the first time, in a nationwide contest. All over the country, Silicon Valley was on the ballot. And for the most part, Silicon Valley lost.
Residents of at least 10 states voted on dozens of proposals to restrict data-center development—local moratoriums, new zoning regulations—and several towns recalled mayors accused of putting the interests of data-center companies over those of constituents. Democratic candidates in some of the most consequential Senate races, including Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan and Sherrod Brown in Ohio, made AI and data-center regulation central to their campaigns. In California, the home of Silicon Valley, residents voted on a proposed “billionaire tax” that tech executives came out in droves to oppose.
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