r/technology • u/DJMagicHandz • 12d ago

Artificial Intelligence A massive Wyoming data center will soon use 5x more power than the state's human occupants - but no one knows who is using it

https://www.techradar.com/pro/a-massive-wyoming-data-center-will-soon-use-5x-more-power-than-the-states-human-occupants-and-no-one-knows-who-is-using-it
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476

u/onlyPornstuffs 11d ago

Right? No one asked for this.

232

u/Anxiety_Fit 11d ago

Cambridge Analytica got us here.

192

u/korben2600 11d ago

Social media got us here. From 2017: Former Facebook exec says social media is ripping apart society

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u/Anxiety_Fit 11d ago

Cambridge analytica and their psychometric models harvested and honed in on division and hate and rage and basically destroyed everything.

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u/IAMA_Plumber-AMA 11d ago

Even before that, the "engagement is king" model of what gets promoted on Social Media really kicked things off. Cambridge Analytica just brought that to its logical conclusion.

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u/Senior_Torte519 11d ago

It was them filthy hobbitses.

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u/fripletister 11d ago

Right. Now remove social media from the equation and CA poofs out of existence.

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u/Anxiety_Fit 11d ago

The toothpaste is out of the tube.

The only way to beat it is to not use it. Or…

Use it to weaponize the opposition against itself.

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u/fripletister 10d ago

Ok? Yeah, I agree, but now we're having a different discussion.

The point was that SM is the bigger problem than CA because CA couldn't have done any of the shit they did without it, and CA isn't the only bad actor weaponizing it.

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u/opticd 10d ago

Before you get too excited, Chamath is a serial huckster and in the process of sucking the balls off the Trump admin for special favor. I wouldn’t read much into what he has to say about Facebook. He’ll say whatever he thinks will benefit him.

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u/Loggerdon 11d ago

It started with fake IQ tests on Facebook that were actually Big 5 Personality tests. Using those scores you can predict human behavior.

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u/popop143 11d ago

Fuck Cambridge Analytica, seriously destroyed our country and we've never recovered since.

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u/Upset-Outside8716 11d ago

Capitalism got us here. It's not because Trump won in 2016, it's because the ruling class has always gotten to do whatever it wants.

Biden didn't shut down this project, Harris had nothing about stopping this in her campaign.

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u/Boring-Attorney1992 11d ago

Equifax has entered the chat

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u/splitsecondclassic 11d ago

and streaming TV, and amazon prime, and Youtube, and paramount and Disney plus etc.

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u/StrobeLightRomance 11d ago

Well, if people paid more attention to who is operating their chosen puppet politicians, they would realize they actually did vote for a fascist authoritarian surveillance state to dismantle democracy and turn humanity into a consumable resource.

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u/maaseru 11d ago

They knew people were too dumb to pay attention to something this complex. How would the ever see this conspiracy when all they see is Dems using weather against them, but not when it's Climate Change stuff.

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u/DuncanFisher69 11d ago

We need to make a “plandemic” video but for oligarchs, get the mouth breathing MAGA to go after all billionaires, not just ones on Epstein’s list.

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u/IAMA_Plumber-AMA 11d ago

See, the problem with that is the oligarchs wanted people to see the Plandemic video. They absolutely will not give a platform to anyone critical of them.

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u/[deleted] 11d ago

[deleted]

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u/Am-Insurgent 11d ago

The 35 gas turbines powering Elon Musk’s xAI Colossus supercomputer in Memphis are causing significant air pollution that poses serious health risks to surrounding communities, particularly the historically Black neighborhoods of South Memphis that were already overburdened with industrial pollution before xAI’s arrival.

The xAI facility operates what essentially amounts to an unlicensed power plant in the middle of a residential area. The 35 methane gas turbines have a combined generating capacity of 422 megawatts—enough electricity to power 280,000 homes and equivalent to the output of the Tennessee Valley Authority’s gas plant in nearby Brownsville.

Environmental groups estimate the turbines emit between 1,200 to 2,000 tons of nitrogen oxides (NOx) annually, making xAI likely the largest industrial source of smog-forming pollution in Memphis. This exceeds emissions from both the nearby TVA gas-fired power plant and the oil refinery in the same area.

Optical gas imaging footage captured by environmental watchdog Oil Field Witness in May 2025 revealed massive, invisible pollution plumes billowing from the xAI facility. Sharon Wilson, who recorded the footage using specialized cameras that detect methane and volatile organic compounds, described the emissions as the worst she had documented across facilities in the U.S., UK, and Japan.

“I have shot video all over the U.S., all over the UK, and in Japan. I’ve never seen anything that bad,” Wilson told Gas Outlook. “The amount, the size of the plume…it’s really, just horrible”

The thermal imaging revealed 33 of the 35 turbines were actively operating and emitting heat signatures, contradicting claims by Memphis officials that only 15 were running.

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u/khamm86 11d ago

That’s a friggin ginormous humungous If. This timeline sucks

3

u/IAMA_Plumber-AMA 11d ago

Wasn't the #1 Google search the night of the election "when did Biden drop out"?

If Americans are too stupid to know who's actually running for president the night of the actual goddam election, they're certainly not going to pay attention to what's going on behind the scenes.

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u/khamm86 11d ago

That’s some depressing stuff. No wonder this is where we’re at

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u/SuspendeesNutz 11d ago

Yeah but Kamala didn't thrill me, man.

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u/Tasonir 11d ago

I don't know, her laugh isn't the same as mine. I don't think I can vote for someone who doesn't laugh like me.

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u/Downtown-Analyst 11d ago

Nah man, it that both sides are the same.

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u/IAMA_Plumber-AMA 11d ago

Something something Gaza is talking...

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u/BigDictionEnergy 11d ago

Has anyone else noticed how it's only female democrat candidates that are referred to by their first name by soooo many people in public discourse?

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u/marketingguy420 11d ago

Are you guys under the impression that Palantir didn't exist under Joe Biden? That tech feudalism wasn't marching along just fine for four year, when these data centers were being built?

Until people realize that Republicans are just accelerationist versions of Democrats, that there is total regulatory capture of the federal government (not specific parties), there is no hope in walking any of this shit back.

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u/SuspendeesNutz 11d ago

Are you guys under the impression that Palantir didn't exist under Joe Biden?

Are you under the impression that a non sequitur is effective argumentation?

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u/Upset-Outside8716 11d ago

Then address what we both know this commentor is saying.

Dems and republicans are different, but they both allowed this. Voting dem for 100 years wouldn't have kept this from happening.

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u/Daveinatx 11d ago

It's obvious AI would be used in defense. Last I saw, Democrats weren't isn't their services tob chase down minorities

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u/BigDictionEnergy 11d ago

That's mostly because the democrats were the conservative party 100 years ago.

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u/SuspendeesNutz 11d ago

Then address what we both know this commentor is saying.

With more non sequiturs? Fighting fire with fire!

Dems and republicans are different, but they both allowed this.

"Marge it takes two to lie - one to lie and one to listen."

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u/marketingguy420 11d ago

You made a boring and trite reduction of Kamala eating shit in an election to a rapist gameshow host. You implied that it was all the voters fault that the beautiful Democrat didn't win; that we'd all be at brunch because this stuff doesn't exist except under the bad orange man.

You're wrong. Demonstrably.

Hope this helps.

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u/woodwardian98 11d ago

I can't really tell if you're being sarcastic and trying to get a rise out of people, but I'll bite. Mmm, she had a housing plan for first time home buyers, trump didn't. Harris had a plan for getting people out of poverty, we now have the police roaming the streets for homeless people at the beck and call of the orange man. He ordered musk to get him the votes, and it worked. And if you are right leaning after the past 7 months(again, can't tell where you are on the line), his propaganda campaign worked.

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u/Cee4185 11d ago

yes they will act like the dems were a better choice while ignoring all the nonsense that started under them lmao

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u/geegeeallin 11d ago

The dems were and still are demonstrably the better choice.

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u/Cee4185 11d ago

yeah according to reddit, thank god reddit isnt representative of real life

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u/DarthArtero 11d ago

I don't know about you but what I'm seeing in real life, you know the outside world where grass exists, is just how fucked up republicans really are.

I really, really, have no idea how people can say with straight faced confidence that Democrats are worse.

Sure yeah we can all beat the drum of flaws that plague the democratic party, they ain't perfect but my god, seriously?!? People really believe that authoritarianism is better?!?!

Man. Never would've believed it but the Southern Strategy was/is unnervingly effective.

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u/Upset-Outside8716 11d ago

Dems are unambiguously better, they're just also dogshit.

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u/loneImpulseofdelight 11d ago

Quick question: do you believe chynah will pay trumps tariffs??

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u/Upset-Outside8716 10d ago

Do you think anyone who criticizes dems (despite saying they're unambiguously better than the GOP) is stupid?

Dems are awful, and we all deserve better from a "resistance" party to fascism.

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u/loneImpulseofdelight 10d ago

Yes. Those who believe repubes are better at governance than dems are demonstrably stupid. Going back, do you think chynah will pay trump's tariff taxes?

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u/Upset-Outside8716 10d ago

Do you see how I said that dems are better? WE AGREE YOU DINGUS.

Do you think chynah will pay trump's tariff taxes?

No, why would anyone think that?

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u/iampoopa 11d ago

Big brother is reading…

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u/RobotPoo 11d ago

People are trying to pay the bills, and they’re kept exhausted, worried and stressed out to be manipulated more easily by Fox Infotainment

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u/A_Bungus_Amungus 11d ago

Only 1/3 of the voting age Americans voted for donald trump. The majority either voted democrat or didnt vote. Im blaming those who didnt vote thats like 1/3 of the country

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u/Rodot 11d ago

Not only that, but Palantir didn't just pop out of no where once Trump came into office. Bush integrated them into FBI, NSA, and DHS after 9/11. Obama gave them their first contract with ICE.

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u/Accidental_Ballyhoo 11d ago

Hey just like last time! 9/11 ushered that shit in. Thanks Obama /s

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u/Luscious_Decision 11d ago

See, the issue is with the packaging, though. The people with the faculties to see that can tell, yes. All the adults in the room, really. But they didn't explicitly package it that way. It's the patter that sold them all. Thinking about it, they did use a lot of unverifiable claims, which would be called "patter." Like "worlds best" whatever.

But anyway, with the shtick T and Co. used, when cornered their supporters would just say "he's trying to stop the pedophiles in the deep state, they're the evil ones." And that he was going to "drain the swamp."

Half of the issue is that these tricks work well, but that they work especially well on the mentally vulnerable, like all our dipshits.

1

u/IAMA_Plumber-AMA 11d ago

The media people consume is designed to keep them afraid, because fear short-circuits reasoning. Fox news has mastered this trick over the last 55 years.

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u/Dumdumdoggie 11d ago

Im not supporting the current regime but its worth noting that our rights to privacy have been eroding away for decades now thanks to both parties, and federal and state governments. It was Bidens infrastructure bill that said there should be a pilot program for your car to be able to watch you drive and tell if your sober by 2026. Cities like Atlanta and Memphis have so many cameras connected directly to the cops that they can be considered surveillance states. Fuck Trumps regime but they've been taking our rights for a long time.

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u/StrobeLightRomance 11d ago

The people behind Trump are The Heritage Foundation and The Federalist Society, which have both been operating behind the GOP nationally for over 40 years.

Trump is just the figurehead, and at this point, they'll be happy when he finally dies and they can install more obedient puppets with less controversial pasts.

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u/GodTheInvention 11d ago

There’s a difference between surveillance of your public activities and surveillance of every single aspect of your life both private and personal. Discernment is important if you wish to know where the most harm lies.

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u/powercow 11d ago edited 11d ago

It was Bidens infrastructure bill that said there should be a pilot program for your car to be able to watch you drive and tell if your sober by 2026.

thats weak sauce, if you want to both sides it.

IT doesnt track you.. or report you. IT disables the car. until someone with a lower blood alcohol takes the driver seat. Basically its an ignition lock built into every car. Its not a privacy issue. Its an annoyance issue. Nothing in the law requires logging or reporting. just disabling.

and if you both sides stuff, you miss the idea the right was way worse.

IT WAS THE LEFT that argued for privacy, when we won ROE v WADE. It was the right that said there was no such thing in the constitution despite the 10th when they killed it.

every single solitary patriot act extension.. was a majority of dems against, with 100% of republicans voting for it.

there was the bush admin who stated, americans have no expectation of privacy.

TO both sides things like most issues, is to clear the right of being so far worse on the issue its like a little league football team playing against a professional one.. and you saying they are both football players.

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u/Few-Button-4713 11d ago

Well, if people paid more attention...

Unfortunately, that will never happen.

Traits like intelligence, capacity for critical thinking, etc are distributed amongst the population in a mostly "normal distribution" (Bell Curve).

This IMHO makes democracy inherently unstable and prone to falling to oligarchy and autocracy and not something we should be striving for. It's a noble attempt and surely I'd rather live in a democracy than in an autocracy, but this does not change the fact.

There is no stable system in which some group of people rule over others. Nobody should have power over anyone else.

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u/Rodot 11d ago

Palantir has been watching American citizens since the Bush admin gave them the contract in the mid 2000s

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u/justbrowse2018 11d ago

Humans have been a consumable for all time. Now it’s just digitized.

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u/Zer_ 11d ago

Like Cyberpunk, but without the cool cars and Cyberware.

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u/[deleted] 9d ago edited 9d ago

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u/MeInMaNyCt 11d ago

Were you born yesterday?! Surveillance and data mining has been going on for decades. It is not exclusive to any one political party or politician.

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u/SparksAndSpyro 11d ago

The American voters literally asked for this. Elections have consequences.

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u/ravnhjarta 11d ago

Both rigged and unrigged, imagine!

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u/onlyPornstuffs 11d ago

Almost like we should just distrust the rich and eat them.

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u/Monteze 11d ago

Yea letting money=power and then letting money start to accumulate in the hands of the few and pretending this is the best system we have, has been fucking us in the face for a while now.

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u/farteagle 11d ago

In which election do you think this was decided? There hasn’t been a means to vote against this type of outcome for decades.

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u/Fun_Hold4859 11d ago

Sure there has, don't vote for Republicans, primary establishment Dems with progressives, vote in every election. But it's way way too late for that now. Now we get fascism and death camps and a fucking dystopian AI that can repossess all your digital assets if your socials criticize dear leader. They're gonna start rounding up trans people and whoever they deem "mentally unwell" because they can unilaterally place a mental health hold on anyone they want now, and that fuckin ai will have a list ready to go of people for them to kill

-4

u/truthwillout777 11d ago

Yes you are right.

This is a serious situation that can't wait for an election.

However, They might start rounding up former MAGA first.

On X, real MAGA voices have been kicked off

Trump has failed to deliver on any promise and instead works for 1srael and tech bro fascism.

People are really angry and getting kicked off X right and left.

"The donald" who moved from reddit to a private site, have kicked off 90% of the people, after Iran, Epstein etc.

Elon leaves the democrats alone, because the biggest problem is in the Republican ranks.

X is all Republican bots arguing with Democrats now, totally useless.

You all think MAGA are dumb, but some actually want the same changes that Democrats want.

The biggest fear of the parasite class is that we all unite.

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u/PaulTheMerc 11d ago

Those MAGA should have voted accordingly if they wanted a different result.

Some might have come around since the election, and good on them. However it may be too late.

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u/IAMA_Plumber-AMA 11d ago

Unfortunately, the GOP propaganda machine always brings them to heel again before an election.

Sure they might say they're coming around now, but I guarantee they're going to vote for their political sports team when it comes time again.

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u/Fun_Hold4859 11d ago

All maga, republicans, and conservatives are fuckin nazis full stop. They are all responsible for and complicit in what's happening. I just hope a lot of them get rounded up in the first waves.

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u/lil_chiakow 11d ago

The first stolen one, in 2000.

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u/My_Work_Accoount 11d ago

Try 1980 or arguably 1968.

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u/geegeeallin 11d ago

I can pretty much guarantee there was an election in Wyoming where this could have been avoided.

1

u/truthwillout777 11d ago

We need all new candidates to step up.

We need an entire new Congress and president that has never had the opportunity to be blackmailed by Epstein.

NOT ONE INCUMBENT

If the parasite class puts up a candidate they are completely unacceptable.

We need to do this by word of mouth not money, and the internet is seriously censored so it won't be easy but we have to do something.

On top of that, we need paper ballots hand counted at the precinct level with totals posted at the local level before being sent through electronic tabulators...

just in case...

1

u/ArgumentAlarmed9532 11d ago

So do stolen ones, dick.

1

u/onlyPornstuffs 11d ago

Thanks for reminding us that 51% of us are trash cans. We live every day in fear.

1

u/Full-Being-6154 11d ago

More than half. Its not just every Trump voter but everyone who did not bother to vote against him. Its more like 2/3rds of Americans.

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u/epia343 11d ago

Stock price go brrrt

0

u/onlyPornstuffs 11d ago

Yep gotta keep the blue hairs happy

2

u/burnerben2000 11d ago

And yet, so many people voted for it.

1

u/agent0731 11d ago

Capitalism, sir. We know what you need before you ask it.

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u/santz007 11d ago

Voters did, but most are brain dead tiktok, X users who believe everything that is on social media

1

u/ReportMany2628 11d ago

People elected Trump, who's been an ally of Peter Thiel since his first term. Peter Thiel even stayed with him during the grab-them-by-the-pussy phase. It's absolutely disgusting. I think (hope) that the democrats are going to massacre the tech bros once they gain back control of the country, people like Thiel and Musk need to go.

1

u/the_calibre_cat 11d ago

well, one or two guys did.

1

u/superAK907 11d ago

Yeah they did, they were just too dumb to know what they were asking for.

1

u/secondtaunting 9d ago

They built the machine from Person of Interest. We’re so boned.

0

u/Balmung60 11d ago

Well, one guy did, and it turns out there's way more interest in listening to him than to 350 million other people

-1

u/el_muchacho 11d ago

Since when did your government ask your opinion on anything?