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Policy & Regulation

Pew Survey Finds Rising US Opposition to AI Data Centers Ahead of Midterms

Pew survey finds 54% of Americans say data centers are mostly bad for the environment, up from 39% in January 2026.

AI News Feed · 2026-09-25 03:40

The survey found that Americans increasingly see data centers as harmful to home energy costs, with 50% saying they are mostly bad for that issue, and to quality of life, with 49% saying the same. Twenty-one percent said they are mostly bad for local tax revenue. The findings come as the US midterm elections approach and AI data centers become part of political debate.

Jobs promises are also losing credibility. Hyperscalers have promised hundreds or sometimes thousands of operational jobs, plus thousands of temporary construction jobs, but the share of respondents who see data centers as mostly bad for local jobs rose nine percentage points, from 15% at the beginning of 2026 to 24% halfway through the year. Another 22% see them as mostly good for jobs, leaving opinions split. Depending on the issue, 18% to 32% of Americans remain uncertain about the impact of data centers.

Three in five US citizens said they would be either not too comfortable or not comfortable at all with a new data center operating in their area. Rural residents were more likely than before to hold negative views, which the report links to more projects being approved for extra-urban locations where space is less constrained.

The Pew study also found negative sentiment rising across age, gender, education levels and political party. Democrats were more likely overall to have negative feelings, but supporters of both major parties became more unhappy during 2026. TechRadar described the pace at which negative views grew in little more than half a year as a major finding of the report.

Politically, President Trump continues to advocate for AI and data center buildouts as part of an effort for the US to be a global leader. At the same time, more states and regions are imposing temporary bans to reassess legislation and local impacts. That includes Texas, the home of OpenAI's massive Stargate project.

Editor's Summary

The Pew Research Center survey found that negative views of AI data centers rose across environmental, energy-cost, quality-of-life and jobs measures between January and mid-2026. The shift is taking place as US midterm elections approach and some states impose temporary bans on new projects. President Trump continues to promote AI and data center construction.