Updated
Updated · The Verge · Jun 4
Kevin O’Leary Halves 40,000-Acre Utah Data Center as Pressure Mounts
Updated
Updated · The Verge · Jun 4

Kevin O’Leary Halves 40,000-Acre Utah Data Center as Pressure Mounts

3 articles · Updated · The Verge · Jun 4

Summary

  • Kevin O’Leary told Utah Senate President J. Stuart Adams he will remove 19,430 acres from Project Stratos, cutting the planned data center footprint to about 20,000 acres.
  • The retreat followed mounting opposition from residents and activists, with Adams days earlier urging a 75% reduction and calling for water-saving technology plus diversions to the shrinking Great Salt Lake.
  • O’Leary also said he will trim another 620 acres near the highway and preserve most of the remaining land as open space.
  • Even at roughly 20,000 acres, the site in and around the Locomotive Springs Waterfowl Management Area would still be larger than Manhattan, leaving concerns over water use, energy demand and pollution.

Insights

Kevin O'Leary agrees to shrink his Utah data center. But can any version of this mega-project truly be sustainable?
Is America's AI boom on a collision course with local communities nationwide?
A $100B project gets huge tax breaks while locals protest. Who really benefits from these hyperscale data center deals?