The rise of artificial intelligence has not always been kind to the communities hosting new data centers.
In an effort to reform these development projects, the mayor of Phoenix is signing on to an agreement with eight other cities around the world, according to Axios.
The global collaboration aims to set up common guidelines to address the massive energy demands and water use of data centers. The AI strain on these resources at the local level has raised utility prices and triggered pushback from residents across the United States.
However, mayors have more say in the matter than you might expect.
"Many of us are in charge of the water systems, and cities are responsible for doing land patterns," Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego told Axios.
State and federal laws are also certainly at play. When it comes down to it, the details of rolling out data centers are "often local decisions," she explained.
Mayors can influence where infrastructure is built, how it gets power, and what role it plays in the wider city.
In Phoenix, Gallego wants to push the AI industry toward renewable energy instead of gas. That change alone could help reduce the facilities' water consumption, which is a major concern in the desert city.
Despite its climate, the city's lower energy costs and less extreme weather make it a popular location for data centers, Axios reported.
The rest of the coalition includes Athens, Greece; Barcelona, Spain; Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Johannesburg; Milan; Paris; Portland, Oregon; and Hobart, Australia.
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$200 or more 💰 For Phoenix, partnering up across oceans makes sense because a growing portion of the AI funding is from international private equity. The initiative will bring together some of those larger investment funds, Gallego noted.
The result of this group of mayors working together remains to be seen. The momentum to build data centers is high, and trying to reform how they come online is no easy task.
There are plenty of potential benefits of AI, such as streamlining clean energy systems and speeding up important environmental research.
Still, the technology poses threats to the safety and security of cities and natural resources, and it must be sustainably developed and regulated.
"So much of the world economy is focused on AI," Gallego added. "We have to get it right for our communities."
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