The AI Files
Everything I have written about artificial intelligence - the money, the rules, the Pentagon, the surveillance it plugs into, and what it looks like on the ground in Memphis.
49 pieces
Memphis and Southaven Can’t Figure Out This Obvious Solution
Southaven's noise law exempts industry under 70 decibels at the fence, only the police can enforce it, and the state says noise isn't its job.
Mississippi Asked xAI Some Very Specific Questions. The Response Was a Hedge.
Agriculture Commissioner Andy Gipson asked data center companies for water, power, heat, noise and jobs figures. SpaceXAI's two-page answer has none.
What You Should Know About Mississippi’s Upcoming Hearing on xAI’s Turbines
Mississippi's hearing on xAI's Southaven power plant is November 9th and 10th in Jackson, about three hours away. It's about turbines still being built.
Were xAI’s turbines legal? Let’s look at the records
Shelby County asked EPA to put its 364-day turbine rule in writing. EPA asked the county for a list of the machines. The record shows neither answer arriving.
Who told EPA that xAI’s turbines need a permit? The turbine industry did.
The companies that build portable gas turbines told EPA that machines like the ones at xAI's sites need air permits. Shelby County and Mississippi told the public the opposite. The industry's own lawyer put it in writing.
Just Unplug AI? Why It Won’t Happen
AI isn't the Coke machine in the cafeteria. It's holding up the roof.
Did the University of Memphis just settle the xAI air fight?
The study told the council pollution mostly went down. Its own limitations slide says there are no field monitoring data for Southwest Memphis at all.
How did 68 of xAI’s turbines get into Mississippi with no permit?
Memphis fought about the turbines it could see. A bigger power plant went up seven tenths of a mile away on one email - and the agency that said yes told me it hadn't been out to look.
Yes, AI could destroy us all. But not how you think it will.
The real villains are the usual suspects.
OpenAI and Anthropic Both Found Out in July They’d Lost Control of Their AI. Shutting It Down Won’t Save Us.
A researcher just quit Anthropic saying AI could kill us all by the end of the decade. I think he's right about the danger and completely wrong about the fix.
An update on the air around xAI’s Colossus 1
The Shelby County Health Department's first statement on the South Memphis air monitor, what EPA's own grant file says instead, and the road the mayor paused.
News update: Texas readers named the site, and it’s Grimes County
I posted this on Facebook on September 7. It lives here too so it’s on the record. This morning I told you xAI’s job listing for a gas power plant had moved from Memphis to Texas, and nobody would say where. Three folks gave me some leads in the comments. I spent the afternoon checking,…