Cerebras Systems CEO Chief Executive Officer Andrew Feldman has blamed data center builders and operators for the rising anger against data centers in the US. AI chip company CEO Feldman criticised what he said the way some data center builders and operators have pushed through projects, acting like “dopes” and causing anger in communities. He said that some of the resources to build infrastructure can be used to help residents, and more can be done to explain the benefits of the facilities, which are lacking. Feldman said, “We could have been good neighbors.” He added, “What we did is we raced ahead. We didn’t think about the communities.”In the past few months, the rapid buildout of data centers across the US has become a controversial topic, with several states announcing laws to restrict their construction in some way, and some even planning to stop them. Founded in 2015, Cerebras makes specialized chips for running advanced AI models, competing in a market dominated by Nvidia. Demand for Cerebras’ processors has surged as AI labs shift from training models to deploying them. The company claims computers based on its chips are faster at inference work, where a trained AI model makes predictions based on new data. But the unique nature of those chips means they don’t fit in regular computer hardware. Cerebras has created its own computers and also runs a network of data centers providing AI processing as a service.Valued at more than $50 billion, the Sunnyvale, California-based company made its debut as a publicly traded company, raising $5.5 billion in the year’s largest initial public offering (IPO) of this year so far. The IPO raised $5.55 billion for Cerebras, based on 30 million shares sold. Revenue at Sunnyvale, California-based Cerebras rose to $510 million in the year ended December 31, from $290.3 million a year earlier, according to a filing with the SEC.
Americans unhappy with AI Data Centers, claims survey
Seven in 10 Americans reportedly oppose construction of data centers for artificial intelligence in their local area, including nearly half, 48%, who are strongly opposed. Barely a quarter favor these projects, with 7% strongly in favor. These results, from a March 2-18 Gallup survey, represent the first time Gallup has asked about data center construction. These data centers house computing equipment that helps power AI technology used by businesses, universities and other institutions. The centers cover large areas of land, require extensive amounts of electricity to operate and need substantial water to cool the equipment, raising concerns about their impact on the environment and local electric bills.The data center question parallels the wording Gallup uses to ask about local nuclear power plant construction. In the same March survey, 53% of Americans say they oppose building a nuclear energy plant in their area, far less than the 71% opposed to data center construction. Since Gallup first asked the nuclear power plant question in 2001, the high point in opposition has been 63%.The March survey asked people to rate their level of concern about the environmental impact of AI data centers. Forty-six percent say they worry a great deal and 24% a fair amount, largely mirroring the degrees of opposition to data center construction.Half of opponents mention data centers’ excessive use of resources, including 18% each mentioning their use of water and energy. Sixteen percent mention a related environmental concern of pollution, including noise pollution and air and water pollution.