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Elon Musk’s xAI accused of lying to Black communities about harmful pollution
- XAI operates its Colossus data center and associated methane gas turbines near the Boxtown neighborhood in Memphis.
- The company deployed multiple mobile turbines to power its supercomputer before completing a permanent electrical substation.
- Environmental groups assert xAI operated over 30 turbines without permits, releasing formaldehyde and other pollutants.
- Community members reported smells and health concerns, while a public hearing addressed permits for 15 permanent turbines on April 25.
- Residents express frustration over perceived lack of communication and the environmental burden on their historically Black community.
12 Articles
12 Articles
‘We Deserve to Breathe Clean Air’: Memphis Residents Take on Elon Musk’s xAI
This story was originally published by MLK50: Justice Through Journalism. Subscribe to their newsletter here. Easter Knox’s brick home in Boxtown has a garden, space for her dog to run and a bench under a sprawling acorn tree planted by her husband. Years ago, he built a large gazebo in the yard adjacent to theirs — a perfect place to listen to the birds. Knox, 74, who married into the Boxtown community in 1977, uses the gazebo to gather with h…
Black Folks to Elon Musk: Hands Off Our Neighborhood
On Friday in Tennessee, the Shelby County Health Department held a public comment meeting as part of its consideration of xAI’s permit request to run 15 natural gas-powered generators in southwest Memphis. Pending permit approval, the Elon Musk-owned company has already been operating the generators — and according to local environmental activists, some 20 more generators too — to supply electricity to Colossus, the supercomputer behind Grok, th…
Ars Technica: Thermal imaging shows xAI lied about supercomputer pollution, group says | ResearchBuzz: Firehose
Ars Technica: Thermal imaging shows xAI lied about supercomputer pollution, group says. “Elon Musk raced to build Colossus, the world’s largest supercomputer, in Memphis, Tennessee. He bragged that construction only took 122 days and expected that his biggest AI rivals would struggle to catch up….Now, xAI is facing calls to shut down gas turbines that power the supercomputer, as Memphis residents in historically Black communities—which have long…
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