DOJ claims xAI’s unpermitted gas turbines are a matter of ‘national, economic, and energy security’

The Justice Department on Monday sided with xAI in a lawsuit aimed at halting the use of dozens of unauthorized natural gas turbines near its data centers in Memphis. Wired.

The DOJ said that if the NAACP, which filed the lawsuit in April, prevails, the result would undermine “U.S. national, economic, and energy security by attempting to cut off the flow of artificial intelligence innovation that supports the War Department’s military operations.”

The memorandum submitted by the Justice Department states that Grok is one of four AI models that support “mission-critical operations” such as the recent attacks in Iran.

The NAACP began telegraphing its intention to sue xAI last June, in an effort to end the company’s practice of using “mobile” gas turbines in its Colossus and Colossus 2 data centers. Those efforts failed, and Elon Musk’s AI company has since added more turbines, bringing the total to 57.

Because the turbines remained on trailers, xAI claims they are exempt from Mississippi air pollution regulations for one year. The Southern Environmental Law Center, which filed the lawsuit on behalf of the NAACP, says the company’s use still violates federal law, which states that trailer-mounted turbines can be considered stationary and therefore subject to regulation.

The NAACP has said the region, already one of the most polluted in the country, has suffered worse air quality since xAI’s data centers went online.

Since last year, the number of turbines in the data centers has more than doubled, resulting in a corresponding increase in three major air pollutants: PM2.5, formaldehyde and nitrogen oxides (NO)._X). All three have been linked to asthma and cardiovascular disease. Exposure to formaldehyde increases the risk of cancer, and PM2.5 has been implicated in a range of conditions from stroke to Alzheimer’s disease.

The company, which is now a division of SpaceX, will likely buy more generators in the coming months or years. In SpaceX’s IPO, the company said it will buy an additional $2.8 billion worth of gas turbines over the next three years to power its AI data centers. At least $2 billion of this is intended for ‘mobile gas turbines’.