Data Centers Could Erase Decades of Air Quality Gains, Texas Pollution Returns to 2000s Levels
The Verge AI · rss · 2026-10-22
A rush of generative AI data centers could push air pollution back to levels not seen since the 2000s, with Texas now ground zero for AI's physical infrastructure, The Verge reports.
- New and proposed data centers are demanding enormous electricity; whether developers meet it with gas turbines or renewables will determine how bad things get.
- Tech companies are devising new supply approaches, including building their own power sources — but if all planned projects plug into the grid, the outlook looks grim.
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