Source: Hackaday
Rural communities are discovering too late that they've become infrastructure hosts for AI companies' massive compute demands, often learning of projects only after permits are filed or construction begins. Local governments lack the technical expertise and coordinated power to negotiate with tech companies moving fast through fragmented municipal governance. These projects strain power grids, water systems, and tax bases while residents see minimal benefit. The choice facing small-town officials is stark: develop the computational literacy and institutional leverage to negotiate, or remain passive sites of extraction while AI infrastructure booms elsewhere.