Meta warns data center opposition could slow AI expansion

Meta president Dina Powell McCormick said Democratic victories in the midterm elections could make it more difficult for technology companies to build data centers. Speaking at the WSJ Tech conference, she said the industry had not sufficiently explained the benefits of such projects. In her view, opposition to local facilities also reflects broader public concerns about artificial intelligence, because data centers are its most visible physical presence.

McCormick said Meta wants to improve sentiment by showing how both the infrastructure and AI can benefit communities. The company operates data centers in 23 states and has five projects, including one in Texas, planned at one gigawatt or more. She said Meta has built such facilities for 20 years and is concerned that some investments could be delayed or lost as politicians campaign against data centers.

According to McCormick, projects are more likely to gain support when Meta pays its own electricity costs, directs additional tax revenue to teachers and first responders, hires locally and wins bipartisan backing. She expects closer scrutiny of future proposals. Meta is also counting on its Muse consumer AI agent, which has more than 10 million users, to eventually reach billions. She added that demand to lease Meta’s computing capacity could provide another route to monetization.