Microsoft’s $7.3 billion AI data center sues over continuous ‘freight train’-like noise | Today’s news
Microsoft’s $7.3 billion AI data center in the US is facing legal challenges after nearby residents claimed the incessant noise from the facility disrupted their lives, the Times of India reports.
Earlier this year, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella described the company’s AI data center in Fairwater, Mount Pleasant, Wis., as the world’s most powerful artificial intelligence facility, saying it connected hundreds of thousands of chips into a single computing cluster.
However, while the device has been hailed as a milestone in the AI race, some locals say it has become a source of constant interference.
Residents are suing because of the constant noise
According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, cited by TOI, three residents of the neighboring village of Sturtevant have filed a class-action lawsuit against Microsoft, alleging that excessive noise from the data center caused private nuisance and negligent damages.
The suit claims the noise comes from diesel generators and HVAC equipment, including chillers, cooling towers and condenser fans, and describes it as continuous and ubiquitous.
Noise generated by diesel generators a HVAC systems including chillers, cooling towers and condenser fans are described in the lawsuit as consistent and ubiquitous, the report said.
Residents describe constant interference
According to TOI, a resident of a nearby town in southwest Michigan last week measured the noise from his porch at 60 decibels, which he described as very irritating.
Amy Cimbalnik, one of three Sturtevant residents named as plaintiffs in the class-action lawsuit, was quoted as comparing the sound emitted by the Microsoft factory in Wisconsin to the sound of a freight train engine running continuously, adding that residents ultimately traced the source to the Microsoft campus.
A Sturtevant resident, unnamed in the report, told regulators the construction-related pounding continued for two years before being replaced by a new, continuous mechanical hum reminiscent of a freight train engine. Another resident, also unnamed, quoted via PC Mag, said the constant noise was affecting his sleep.
TOI reported this Microsoft acknowledged the lawsuit and told the publication that it remains committed to being a good neighbor in the communities where it builds and operates its data centers.
The tech giant claimed last month that it had already fixed the problem, although the fact that the lawsuit was filed on July 1 suggests residents remain unconvinced, the report said.
According to a June 18 update on Microsoft’s official blog, cited by TOI, the company said it was investigating the source of the sound and had conducted tests and implemented measures to mitigate the noise, citing a “tonal humming sound” that was traced to cooling fans operating at high speed in April. The blog added that several neighbors confirmed that the mitigation had solved the problem.
Sean Ryan, director of communications for the Village of Mount Pleasant, said the village has not received any complaints since Microsoft made changes to its property in mid-April to deal with the hum, adding that officials are ready to respond if residents speak up and will continue to ensure Microsoft acts as a responsible corporate neighbor, TOI reported.
The report said the lawsuit is one of several the tech giants are facing as sprawling, resource-intensive data centers continue to expand into residential areas, a backlash that has grown into a bipartisan issue with the potential to affect the upcoming midterm elections.
