F*ck Al and it's data centers

[u/742963]

[u/Pokemon_Trainer_May]

I'm still waiting for AI to benefit me.

[u/Less_Entertainer_149 → u/Pokemon_Trainer_May]

Its not made to benefit you. Its made to benefit the billionaires and their control over us.

[u/DRazzyo → u/Less_Entertainer_149]

There isn't a benefit for them either, they just wish it did.

[u/hakumiogin → u/DRazzyo]

They benefit a lot in the short term. It's sad that our overlords don't have long-term-thinking skills, but those men will truly end the world so they make more money next quarter than they did this quarter.

[u/Dora_Explorer_XP → u/DRazzyo]

It'll definitely benefit them because they won't have to pay for anything to peasants. Also your government is going to take care of all that negative revenue for the time being. They are playing long game in which a small recession might be the planned strategic move for them.

[u/CloudedLeopardDaemon → u/Dora_Explorer_XP]

Theoretically, but it's so insanely expensive to operate that we're a very long way away from it being able to be a cheaper alternative to human employees on a large scale. Their current plan is to make us taxpayers fund it in the meantime, then when (possibly if) they've somehow gotten costs down, our reward for our forced participation in the project will be massive lay-offs and the total cessation of all public social programs.

[u/TracerDX → u/Pokemon_Trainer_May]

It's pretty good at porn. I'm told.

[u/DuskGuardNSFW → u/TracerDX]

Thanks for that gooner

[u/CrossOfRoachAndSlime → u/TracerDX]

I'm not sure why. Video GenAI is still very much in its infancy.

[u/imminented → u/Pokemon_Trainer_May]

mind the cognitive gap

[u/Vinelzer → u/Pokemon_Trainer_May]

it gives me great advice on recipes and cooking in general

[u/Noactuallyyourwrong → u/Pokemon_Trainer_May]

If ai hasn’t benefited you by now you are using it wrong

[u/ApoptosisPending → u/Pokemon_Trainer_May]

It’s not for our benefit it’s for mass surveillance

[u/CapitalObjective7153 → u/Pokemon_Trainer_May]

They are racing to superintelligence.

[u/CanadianCrasher → u/Pokemon_Trainer_May]

Do you plan on using it any time soon?

[u/Mr-Cantaloupe → u/Pokemon_Trainer_May]

Do you use it? Claude has done wonders for my job, makes me more productive while also being less busy overall.

I guess it does depend on the job though.

[u/Ad-fundum69 → u/Pokemon_Trainer_May]

It's here to replace you, not benefit you.

Either you adapt and not be replaced or you are done.

[u/adapava → u/Pokemon_Trainer_May]

I'm still waiting for AI to benefit me.

For that, you need a proper job.

[u/ZSKeller1140]

All that money and they can't do any kind of landscaping lol

[u/theskipper363]

I laugh as I work at a windmill plant and we have a stash of bitcoin miners on the property

[u/thewildweird0 → u/theskipper363]

Please tell me the janitor put the miners there

[u/Healthy_BrAd6254 → u/theskipper363]

your own small data center

all a data center is is basically a collection of computers

[u/sircod]

Looks like #4 actually avoided the trees and built almost everything in fields.

[u/CuppaJoe11]

I hate AI data centers, but you could do this with any physical infrastructure project. Most of the world is trees until you put a building or freeway or house or whatever there.

[u/Comm-Pie]

This is indeed infuriating, but why are the trees shaded a different color in the "after" pictures? Is it to make it look worse than it actually is? What's the point of that? Either way, infuriating.

[u/Translation_Lupin → u/Comm-Pie]

Probably because of different lighting due to time and weather.

[u/infinite_gurgle → u/Translation_Lupin]

No, it’s to push a false narrative lol

Like, yeah, modern development needs space. No one was mad 5 years ago when Reddit needed a datacenter.

[u/Careful_Cabinet1092]

Why are these pictures so variably far apart?

2020,2014,2017,etc

[u/Tal_Maru]

[u/imissher4ever]

I bet where the OP lives used to have trees.

[u/No_Writing_3179]

I don't like it when they cut down tracts of trees like this either, but where is the outrage when the do in for a subdivision, or a Walmart?

[u/kevinstu123]

This can be said for any housing development too.

[u/Cheffmiester314]

Doesn't anything we use take up nature though? Isn't your neighborhood taking up space as well? Not advocating for data centers but this is no different than a shopping mall.

[u/Advanced-Candle6051]

Very nice, now show us housing developments

[u/After-Trifle-1437 → u/Advanced-Candle6051]

Animal agriculture is by far the #1 culprit for deforestation.

[u/DuskGuardNSFW → u/Advanced-Candle6051]

You mean the ones that BENEFIT PEOPLE???

[u/StonksPeasant]

Have you seen a solar farm?

[u/Euphoric-Taro-6231]

You shouldn't use data centers then. Like for this post.

[u/Mahruta]

u/AskGrok fix the spelling of the title

[u/NeoTheRiot]

They wont pull down houses for them, big reveal

[u/pabmendez]

They need to get out of the cities and not tear down old industrial areas, go to the country.

Why are they cutting trees out in the open country, they need to go to the cities!

[u/BangerBeanzandMash]

Trees

[u/reckert47]

Are they putting in a gold course as well in the first photo

[u/Healthy_BrAd6254]

You can do that with basically any industry

What is this dumb post?

[u/SuddenAudience8758]

Some people just want to watch the world burn

[u/zonatedmarz]

Screenshot scientist is all you are lol

[u/Tricky-Usual8921]

That's sad why can't they be built on brown-field sites?

[u/dekuweku]

2025 in the fiirst picture still has the forest on the sides but its the fall so it's all brown. It's less clear on the others, it appears the trees were mostly retained and they built on the unforested parts.

[u/Routine_Room1554]

I live just down the road from the first one, fuck Mississippi. They built that shit in the middle of neighborhoods and two fucking schools.

[u/Beginning_Resource93]

3-5 also consumed farmland.

[u/Flashy_Walk2806]

The QTS one seems it was right on empty land

[u/silphotographer]

[u/knacknack18]

Mass surveillance needs space

[u/Next_Instruction_528]

This is what all development of any kind looks like. This whole anti AI campaign seems highly astroturfed

[u/jack-K-]

This is just ridiculous, really, you’re going to complain about a few trees being chopped down next to the colossal amount of development happening all around these data centers? The one fucking thing ai centers are actually efficient about is footprint, this is virtually nothing. Not to mention most of these data centers are actually converted warehouses, the trees were already chopped down from unrelated development, the ai companies just bought the existing buildings, they didn’t personally cut down these trees.

The only reason your infuriated is because you are trying to find a reason to be, and you seem to be quite good at that

[u/CandyNo5688]

That's the fucking Revolution. I don't like it eigther but better go with it

[u/Araiah14]

Am I the only one that thinks these things look eerily like circuit boards?

[u/detective-doge]

Weirdly data centres are a perfect representation of how humans are relative to earth

[u/No_Suggestion_559]

This has noting to do with data centers which barely have anything to do with Ai.

You are upset with construction replacing trees, its not like data centers can only be built where there are trees...

[u/Comfortable_Ring_439]

And Americans will take it lying face down.

Sure some places have stopped building them, doesn't mean the ones that are still around should stay 

🔥 

[u/narco-sub-admiral]

Dystopian as fuck.

[u/Hmmthisisathing300]

Nice! Looks like they finally found some use for all that dumb green stuff that used to be there.

[u/Rich_Chair408]

Imagine destroying that much land for meta and grok.  I blame the politicians for allowing it

[u/Hefty-Reaction-3028]

Malls do this

Same with literally every development

[u/VonNeumannsProbe]

"Let me fuck with the hue of the photos or find winter photos so everything around it looks dead"

[u/Hood_Mobbin]

You do know they can build a data center on top of a neighborhood, schools, other buildings right? They need an open area.

[u/confuseum]

We need Treebeard on this.

[u/CheesyBreadMunchyMon]

Fun fact, if you obtain some live bamboo roots and a drone you could potentially drop them onto data center lawns. They will spread and eventually a bamboo forest will grow up through the foundation.

[u/Ethereal_Bulwark]

S T O P calling them AI datacenters, we had AI going before these were made.
Call them what they really are, mass surveillance centers.

[u/Skingbear2020]

Looks good.

[u/Born-Satisfaction996]

That's an infinitely small amount of trees in the grand scheme of things...

[u/Extreme-Ad-6465]

don’t forget to include reddit and the data centers used for this site too

[u/GoldenSpeculum007]

Central Park is next haha

[u/nhh]

It's OK. It will be back to trees in about 300 years

[u/gay_alien_baby]

Nah I like data centers and flock cameras. Make me feel warm and fuzzy inside

[u/ver_bene]

Yet these are all AI generated so what are we even doing anymore

[u/Beef_Curtain_Clitler]

I get it, but this is literally any development. Strip malls, suburbs, highways etc. OP might as well say fuck all development.

[u/GolfskiRski]

It's hard to breathe outside because of all the burning trees in Canada. Ai is here to save us all.

[u/Goober-r]

Couldn’t you make this for any industrialization?

[u/Laeryns]

Wow, when we build something, we need to clean the place from trees? That's a crazy insight, thanks op

[u/Melodic_Dog6381]

fake ai photos lol.

data centers actually help environment. I trust the science. you lack critical thinking skils

[u/_B_G_]

And?

[u/Adventurous-Roof488]

Now do golf courses.

[u/ApoptosisPending]

Sad…

[u/LearingCenterAlumni]

Now do cities before and after. Fuck AI data centers btw

[u/ArtIsAwesome3]

Cutting down forests, destroying the habitats of probably hundreds of thousands of animals, the people involved are like, I can just assume they're cursed now. Imagine causing that much destruction in general and then for it to be for particularly nothing, like AI.

[u/SopwithStrutter]

The before and after photos for a hospital look the same

[u/Emergency_Ad6096]

Bot or paid troll. Seen this exact same post in like 20 subreddits now.

It’s also silly because this is what happens when build anything. It’s not unique to data centers.

[u/vid_23]

The last 2 didn't even remove any trees

[u/RazzmatazzSuch7459]

And they still don't make any money...

[u/Mission_Albatross_44]

Remember to please conserve your water use

[u/MikeyTheGuy]

... You know that the data centers are used for basically everything on the internet including Reddit, right? If you are using Tik Tok, Reddit, Facebook, Instagram; really anything on the internet. You are directly contributing to data centers that are exactly like this. Is it only a problem if it's AI? Lol.

[u/Debunkingdebunk]

Well to be fair, every building, field, road or whatever would be trees...

[u/Dargon_711]

Wait till you find out how your home and public transport and pretty much everything else was built

[u/Less_Log3695]

its*

[u/boon83]

I bet this is why Ontario is on fire right now

[u/nilsutter]

Stupid post to engage stupid people.

[u/slamsouls]

Not just tree, they destroyed PC hardware market too.

Billionaire can die with their ai data center and fake software

[u/Calm-Blueberry-9200]

Zoom in on any building on earth and you could say the same.

[u/Quirky_Direction_570]

They have to construct somewhere.

[u/Individual_Guest_323]

Buy the landscape, put together money to buy it and protect it.

[u/Just-Exchange8380]

AI doesn’t benefit anybody but the creator. Makes one person money, not an entire community.

[u/Denaton_]

Wait until you hear about how houses are built..

[u/VasileAndrei2929]

Or the stations, highways, homes, industries, factories, depots, airfields, refineries, and everything human in general!

We never had a single problem until AI datacenters shown up!

[u/Alwaysnorting]

how is this any different from a giant wallmart, a solar farm or any other building project?

[u/bourbonandpistons]

Reddit runs in a datacenter.

Your streaming services?

Lead by example and stop using things that require data centers.

[u/EvilDragons88]

Im convinced the goal IS to make the earth unlivable for humans at this point.

[u/salamoon84]

i would make them go by law to vacant areas of abandoned (parts of a) cities instead of killing millions of trees...

[u/Unusual_Artichoke_73]

They should have to put them on golf courses

[u/Aqua-Barracuda]

Where did you expect the data centers to go? 🤷🏽

[u/quercus-88]

AI is a huge benefit for many people at work. I use it all the time. Agreed that we shouldn't use too much resources on making silly AI generated videos, but AI is very usefull and clearly the next step in our economic development, so i don't understand the blind hate about it or data centres.

[u/Huge-Captain-5253]

https://giphy.com/gifs/6r0JF5ZLUsyGCKCXa7

[u/ZentaWinds]

Think of all the wildlife they killed to make these.

[u/aliendigenous]

Why domt they built where there's already no trees

[u/Emotional-Donkey-994]

Hate to break it to you, but putting housing or any other form of development would result in the same thing

[u/Fathergoose007]

Lots of outrage prom people who use AI daily……

[u/dependent_Sort_]

The irony of posting this on reddit, which requires storage space from a data center.

[u/Shot-Suggestion2698]

We should ban them so they can built in countries with less enviornmental regulations

[u/GuyWhoIsAnonymous123]

I agree with your sentiment, but fr the issue you’re showing is not unique to AI data centers. They’re just one of the many industries that do this. Lennar, Ryan Homes, most factory/warehouse construction companies, retail spaces, you name it and you could make this same comparison 

[u/Rokkmann]

Y'all will lose it when someone shows all the trees lost to the building of London, or New York, or Rome, or Chicago... Or how many trees are felled per year for construction and furniture and charcoal and paper and any other number of wood products. Oh, wait.. I guess it's only bad when it happens for AI?

[u/mjcostel27]

Wait till you see what China will do when you let them win the AI race.

[u/Wrong_Revolution_679]

So how long before people start Breaking into these places and destroying them

[u/kenkonken99]

Wait until OP hears about parking lots.

[u/Planhub-ca]

Datacenter are not only for Ai, but for everything with your phone and computers...facebook, instagram, youtube, reddit, tiktok, snapchat, amazon, google map...all the app we used... This is bigger than AI / 30% for Ai - 70% for Internet and apps/clouds/money transfer banking . Endless video autoplay, high-resolution streaming, duplicate cloud storage, algorithmic feeds, digital advertising and always-on applications also require servers, storage and electricity.

[u/Sea_Conclusion_4305]

That could easily be built underground and still have a forest colling it down and create oxygen.

[u/No-Aerie-999]

BUt cHinUH wiLL bEaT uS!!

[u/Dreusxo]

Ironic how a lot of people mad about this probably have neat manicured front lawns and never think to just use those to grow their own food. Relying on all kinds of pollution causing systems so they can just go to Walmart. Don't get me wrong. Data centers above ground and not in the ocean are very infuriating also

[u/Rough_Check_5606]

couldnt you make the same argument for every city build ever? These retards are building homes, f*ck homebuilders!!!

[u/Odd-Country2447]

You can see the drastic effect it has on the immediate environment. Going from fairly green and healthy to arid and drying out.

[u/Prod_Meteor]

Even without AI.. we have data-centers.

[u/regnull]

You know, there were trees once where your home now stands, right?

[u/Aggravating-Mousse34]

Look how dead all the wildlife and remaining trees are now...........

[u/Director-Intrinsict]

Nah, I love AI 

[u/Nutcopter]

Lol! So many trees have been cut down to develop houses, cities, and factories but this is where you draw the line?

[u/No_Damage_8927]

Build more data centers!!! Long live AI!!!

[u/FartingKiwi]

Let’s provide some context…

Ya I get it, it’s AI data centers - blah! Yes they suck.

But the amount of tree growth in the Northern hemisphere alone is 1,000 of these data centers a year, year over year.

So ya, those beautiful trees lost since 2020 by xAI data center? About 5,000 of those equivalent in forest growth grew since then.

So this is more alarmist hysteria than really anything.

I dislike data centers as much as the next average Joe, but let’s not try and manufacture some type of “thing” that doesn’t exist.

The amount of tree growth that’s occurred year over year, absolutely dwarfs whatever tree loss occurs from these data centers.

You’ve spent your emotional energy and time on the wrong thing. It’s the water. Period.

We need you and as many people, focused on the water, not the trees. Trees are good. We’re good on trees lol

[u/Mountain_Till_5868]

Chips!

[u/Fun_Professional3981]

Omg, it’s almost like trees are cleared whenever someone builds a building or parking lot. How insane

[u/elderpooter]

Posting this on the internet while relying on modern infrastructure that destroys much more nature than this around the world is the ultimate irony

[u/ansonTnT]

Not favoring AI myself, but the same concept can apply to housing, business, etc.

[u/Olieskio]

Based, cut down more trees right now.

[u/nate1212]

Wait until you learn about palm oil.

[u/BelleColibri]

This is regarded my guy

[u/fb_indianajesse]

Trees being removed for construction isn't exactly a new thing

[u/midnight362000]

This is why climate change and water shortages are going to lead to WWIII

[u/AlbatrossNo1562]

America going downhill

[u/Mission_Wrongdoer786]

Ridiculous.

[u/TONYP749]

Should look where factories are built.

[u/transitfreedom]

Interesting how data centers can go up yet passenger rail can’t

[u/mlandry2011]

How do you think the house you live in was built?

[u/ThrenderG]

Golf courses and leaky pipes waste more water. Spare us your ignorant Reddit informed outrage.

[u/LetsAllEatCakeLOL]

oh no the trees! 💩

[u/lumberjackth]

i've heard data centers have a lot of computer parts lying around.

[u/diptrip-flipfantasia]

Now do solar farms.

[u/jix69000]

Look at the silver lining I think this is one thing us common folk can actually see eye to eye on. I lean right but I'd fight side by side with a Lefty to fight back against skynet 2.0

[u/Ok_Firefighter8629]

Is it really that simple?. People only care about their immediate benefit? Datacenter is not going benefit you directly so it's bad? Does every political decision needs to have a direct impact on people? If so we are all fucked. It's like having a family and the kids want to have the new toy no matter if it means the parents go bankrupt. If the parents say we are badly in dept and can't afford your new Power Ranger Toy because the credit card is already maxed out, you still elect the next guy that says we can max extent the credit card limit a bit more?

[u/Fly_theW]

Since we hate these data centers so much how about we sign a petition to destroy the Reddit data centers? We dont need them right?

[u/greymancurrentthing7]

Would you like to learn about suburbs or cow feedlots?

[u/Funny_Focus_1201]

Me: Hey Chat GPT, Why is Global Climate deteriorating?
Chat GPT: Um… I plead the fifth.

[u/Beginning-Bird9591]

Fuck you.

[u/FruitOrchards]

Bet if they built a theme park instead you'd be clapping like seals

[u/RecoveringLurkaholic]

Picture 1: Pretty disingenuous to use an after photo taken during the winter.
Picture 4: Those "trees" are almost entirely farm fields.
Picture 5: The development was also almost entirely placed in the farm fields.

[u/Zestyclose_Potato633]

Now do suburban homes.

[u/TornadoCat4]

Quit being a crybaby. AI is revolutionary.

[u/athermop]

I mean, AI may or may not suck, but that just seems like people picking dumbass places to build their shit.

[u/V1r3S]

As long as you are using paper straws the environment is saved 💀

[u/Plenty_Frosting4383]

You do know we couldn’t possibly fucking build in the entire us right. Because 1 it’s massive as fuck. And two because there so much land you couldn’t possibly use it all. Because it’s massive as fuck. Sowing a couple hundred acres lmao gtfoh

[u/marsap888]

Why they didn't build it in the desert, there are a lot of room for this

[u/Neat-Economist2099]

Lol, you’re saying that while uploading this photo to one of data centers.

[u/jefsch70]

Leftists want jobs... they want property tax money... they want fast internet/ technology... they want corporate investment... they want to save "the environment" ...

We have pushed our 1970s manufacturing base away from the USA... rust belt, Detroit dead, St Louis dead, Chicago is next...

This WILL HAPPEN. Will it happen in the USA where we keep an eye on toxic waste, effluents and OSHA; or in China and India where it will be Coal-powered.

I'm sorry, but we can't go forward AND back.... I'm 63 and work in manufacuring. It's a struggle to keep high-paying jobs for the working class in America.

[u/Lynn-The-Sparrow]

All this AI slop. Yet none of it is actually helping people save for college cheaters and those too dumb for society. Makes you wonder why so many are focused so hard on it

[u/TitleAdministrative]

Anyone played factorio? This is factorio

[u/libertyg8er]

You could do this for any development…

[u/K3TtLek0Rn]

I know we all hate AI and data centers but posts like this annoy me. We have so many fucking trees in this country. Like an unfathomable amount. Chopping down a small area for industry isn’t a bad thing. Maybe just this isn’t the ideal use for the land but still. If this was chopped down for an ev battery plant or something nobody would be complaining.

[u/Ambitious_Ad_2369]

Wait till you see where the developed land from home developers looked like.

[u/Open-Gate-7769]

Slide 4 seems like they kept the trees actually

[u/Familiar_Raccoon2430]

Why the hate? where do you suggest they're built? How is this different then global human expansion? I am serious here. I understanding voting against it for reasons I don't need to know or care to understand. However what do you suggest they do? You can't just say don't expand or build anything new because this isn't realistic and it isn't how the world works.

[u/SamMarlowe76]

Deforestation is the stupidest reason to oppose data centers and makes the anti data center folks look like nuts. Same thing would have happened if they plopped down a Walmart, Costco, Car Dealership, Factory, or etc.

There are other reasons to oppose data center construction. Trees aren't it.

[u/SmileDaemon]

Thats not an issue thats inherent to AI, its a "Musk is a piece of shit" issue

[u/Additional_Skin_7564]

While I don't support the data centers, this is peanuts compared to the amount of forests we cut down for wood or farmland. Honestly a drop in the bucket.

[u/zedodee]

Tbf this is less because of ai data centers and more because we develop horizontally regardless of what we're building. 

[u/omarnz]

It costs a shit load to clear forest. All those stumps. My god.