Judge allows NAACP lawsuit over xAI data center pollution to move forward

A federal judge denied xAI’s motion to dismiss an NAACP lawsuit accusing the company of operating at least 35 combustion turbines at its Colossus data center outside Memphis without the required air permits, in violation of the Clean Air Act. Judge Debra M. Brown ruled that the plaintiffs have standing, that the turbines are not exempt as mobile sources, and that the claims will proceed. The case matters as public backlash against data centers grows: New York recently passed a moratorium on new data centers and other governments are considering similar measures.

• TechCrunch AI2026-10-31 21:17