NAACP sues Musk’s xAI, alleging illegal air pollution

( Hill )

The NAACP and its Mississippi State Conference are suing Elon Musk’s xAI, alleging that it did not get a permit before emitting large amounts of pollution into a Memphis-area community.

The suit alleges that xAI and subsidiary MZX Tech violated the Clean Air Act by not getting the permit for their Colossus Gas Plant, which powers its Colossus 2 data center with 27 gas turbines. This data center powers the AI chatbot “Grok” which is used on Musk’s social media site X and operates as a standalone app.

The suit says that the plant emits large amounts of pollution that are linked to asthma, respiratory diseases, heart problems and certain cancers. It also says that the communities surrounding the plant have a disproportionately high Black population.

It says that if the companies had gone through the Clean Air Act process, they could have been required to install technology that cuts down on this pollution.

“A data center should not be a potential death sentence for a community’s health,” Abre’ Conner, NAACP’s director of environmental and climate justice, said in a statement Tuesday.

“By looking to evade clear air laws to operate dirty turbines that emit pollution and known carcinogens, these companies are following a shameful, familiar pattern: asking Black and frontline communities to bear the toxic brunt of ‘innovation,’” she continued. 

The NAACP initially threatened to sue xAI over the Memphis gas turbines in mid-February. The Clean Air Act requires plaintiffs to provide a 60-day notice of their intent to sue under the law. 

The Hill has reached out to xAI for comment. 

Robert Tipton, branch president of the NAACP in DeSoto County, Miss., told The Hill that he’s not against Musk being a businessman or “making money,” but he is against “secrecy” and “potential health issues that may come from this.”

“We have members that live within a mile or two miles” of the plant, he said, adding that “they believe they are experiencing a different kind of cough” and their family members are sick.

The lawsuit is the latest instance of resistance to data centers because of their community impacts. Residents of communities around the country have raised concerns about energy prices and water use as well as potential pollution.

AI companies have pushed to rapidly build data centers in an effort to expand their computing power amid the race to develop the technology. They initially had support among both Republican and Democratic politicians, but the tide has turned against the infrastructure over the past year.

Meanwhile, this is not the only time xAI has been accused of skirting air pollution requirements. The NAACP previously threatened to sue over pollution from the company’s Colossus 1 data center.