Major technology firms and data center managers are now worried about their public perception as the AI industry surges.
Major technology firms and data center managers are now worried about their public perception as the AI industry surges.
In recent months of 2025, Meta invested $6.4 million into an advertising initiative spanning cities nationwide, from Sacramento to Washington, with a definitive goal: persuade the public regarding the establishment of new data centers. As the New York Times indicates, the campaign features brief, down-to-earth video highlights showcasing Meta’s data centers located in Altoona, Iowa, and Los Lunas, New Mexico.
The advertisements advocate that Meta’s data centers generate employment, revitalizing rural locales.
Nonetheless, they adopt a rather optimistic perspective. For instance, the Altoona video depicts a town on the verge of vanishing, yet due to Meta’s data center, its inhabitants can gather at local diners and engage in football games. The Los Lunas video likewise illustrates data center workers enjoying barbecues with their families, instead of relocating to seek employment.
Moreover, Meta is not the sole entity aiming to sway the public toward supporting the data center expansion. The Financial Times disclosed this week that data center operators like Digital Reality, QTS, and NTT Data are orchestrating a “lobbying blitz” to promote new data centers in response to growing public resistance.
However, the recent winter storm that impacted the nation underscored the challenges the power grid is facing, particularly around high-capacity data centers.
For Meta, as well as challenges from competitors like Microsoft and Google, these extensive data centers are vital for supporting AI operations, but public sentiment has been increasingly negative. Numerous communities are resisting the development of new data centers, rallying across political lines due to worries about rising energy costs and water consumption. These movements have led to delays and cancellations in billions of dollars’ worth of data center projects nationwide, including canceled construction efforts in Oregon, Arizona, Missouri, Indiana, and Virginia.
