Anti-Data-Center Protests Sweep at Least 125 U.S. Locations as AI Buildout Backlash Goes National

Demonstrators gathered at as many as 125 sites across the United States on Saturday to protest the rapid construction of AI data centers, marking the first coordinated national mobilization against the physical infrastructure powering the artificial intelligence boom. Organizers said the "National Day of Protest Against AI Data Centers" stretched across roughly 30 to 38 states, with concerns ranging from electricity costs and water use to noise, land use, public health and national security.