Since AI data fulfillment centers started populating rural areas across the United States, the general public has expressed concern about the negative effects these centers will have on their surrounding communities, specifically the water supply and ecological systems.
But a new concern has come to light: the noise coming from these data centers and how these centers could cause health issues and disrupted sleep for the surrounding community members.
One example is a 30-megawatt data center in Southwest Michigan, operated by Hyperscale Data, which community members have complained emits a loud and constant humming noise.
However, X user @TaraBull posted a video online to show the world just how loud the data center truly is.
In the video, a woman simply pans the camera back and forth as the data center hums a high-pitched and very loud sound. The hum is largely reminiscent of insects, if they were exceptionally large and aggressive.
You can watch the video here:
The data center in the video is located in Dowagiac, Michigan, which has approximately 1,300 residents, many of whom are being negatively impacted by the sounds they can hear from their homes and workplaces.
Fellow X users were disturbed by the video and the implications of these data centers.
A class-action lawsuit is now in effect, specifically to address the constant noise and the sheer volume of it.
The lawsuit includes complaints of "headaches and sleepless nights," which is impacting people's health, children going to school, and adults going to work. Several residents have even described the noise as "living in a prison in our own yard" and feeling "physically invaded" by the "excessive noise."
There's no telling at this time what the long-term effects of living near a data center like this could be, but at least so far, AI slop doesn't seem to be worth what it's costing impacted communities.
@elektrotimmy/X
