Kevin O'Leary Halves 40,000-Acre Utah Data Center, Blaming China-Linked Anti-AI Campaigns
Updated
Updated · Fortune · Jun 10
Kevin O'Leary Halves 40,000-Acre Utah Data Center, Blaming China-Linked Anti-AI Campaigns
3 articles · Updated · Fortune · Jun 10
Summary
O'Leary cut the footprint of his Utah data center project by half after mounting backlash over the 40,000-acre, 9-gigawatt development.
The investor said "tens of thousands" of hostile comments came from shared IP addresses and foreign accounts, and he alleged China-linked networks were amplifying opposition without providing concrete evidence.
The project has become a flashpoint in Box Elder County, where commissioners advanced it last month even as protesters warned about power use, water demand and other environmental risks.
Public resistance extends well beyond Utah: a Heatmap Pro poll found 7 in 10 Americans oppose data centers near their homes, including 75% of Democrats and 63% of Republicans.
Researchers say that anger is largely organic—driven by local environmental concerns, weak community benefits and broader unease about AI—while China has become a politically useful scapegoat ahead of the midterms.