Microsoft's $7.3 billion AI data center hit with class-action lawsuit over noise pollution

Wisconsin residents file class-action lawsuit against Microsoft's 'world's most powerful AI data center' due to data center noise -- plaintiffs also mention construction noise and extreme light pollution from $7.3 billion facility

A data center set right up against homes unavoidably creates a messy situation. Controversy due to AI data center buildouts generally centers around their massive power usage and draining of local water reserves, but noise is a third torment to nearby residents, and one that is arguably much harder to correct. Residents of Sturtevant, slightly south of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, filed a class-action lawsuit against Microsoft due to the excessive noise produced by the company's Fairwater facility. CEO Satya Nadella described the project as "the world's most powerful AI data center," projected to generate 865,000 tokens per second and have a final bill of $7.3 billion. The Sturtevant residents live just 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the facility. The lawsuit was filed by three citizens and represents the households within this distance, reportedly amounting to over 1,000 homes, including areas in Mount Pleasant. The filing describes the noise situation as "not only excessive, but consistent and pervasive," and claims Microsoft did not "implement adequate acoustic barriers, shields, or walls that absorb, mitigate, and/or prevent the escape of noise, thereby resulting in the offsite emission of excessive noise beyond its property." One resident claims he had to change his shift at work to be able to sleep at all. Nearby residents also complain about excessive dust and traffic stemming from the construction work, as well as light pollution. One resident says he often can't see his house coming into town, while another claims that before the data center arrived, the sky was dark and full of stars, now mostly gone due to the bright lights. To some credit, Microsoft appears to have been trying to improve the situation, judging by a fairly detailed blog post on its community website. On June 18, the company said its engineers applied several measures that "fully resolved the issue," and that it would apply additional mitigations over the following months, including "additional sound reduction components." The backstory in the post says the firm was aware of the issue back in April, and "[it] did not expect the tonal quality of the sound to travel as far as it has," attributing the decibels to cooling fans operating at too-high speeds, now purportedly corrected. In an earlier project update about the data center, Microsoft says it would have street sweepers working 10 hours a day and limit construction to hours between 6am and 10pm. The lawsuit was filed on July 1, indicating that either the issue isn't resolved, or that the particularly short distance between Fairwater 1 and Sturtevant might make for a conundrum that's exceedingly tricky to solve. Some Mount Pleasant residents even live across the street from the campus, too. Before the Fairwater data center arrived, the land was already zoned for heavy industrial use back in 2017 to Foxconn, a status that carried over to Microsoft upon purchase. Notably, Wisconsin's "direct legislation" apparently does not allow amending or repealing existing ordinances, and is only available to cities, not towns. Follow Tom's Hardware on Google News, or add us as a preferred source, to get our latest news, analysis, & reviews in your feeds.

Wisconsin Residents Sue Microsoft Over Noisy, 'Nightmare' Data Center

A group of Wisconsin residents has filed a class-action lawsuit against Microsoft, claiming that its neighboring data center produces "excessive noise." The lawsuit, filed last week in a US district court, targets the Microsoft data center in Mt. Pleasant, Wisconsin, which was completed last month after being announced in 2024. Although Microsoft has dubbed the facility a "modern marvel" and the world's most powerful AI data center, three people who live near it claim the site has created a nuisance through the use of noisy diesel generators and large cooling systems. "The noise emitted from the Data Center, and experienced by Plaintiffs and the Class, is not only excessive, but consistent and pervasive," the class-action lawsuit argues. The legal action adds to a growing number of noise-related and environmental lawsuits filed against data center owners as more are built across the country. Last month, Mississippi residents filed a class-action lawsuit demanding that Elon Musk's xAI pay damages over the alleged jet-engine-like noise emanating from a nearby data center. The lawsuit in Wisconsin is a bit different in that it accuses Microsoft's data center of generating a persistent "low-hum" sound that operates as a "low-frequency infrasound" not reflected in traditional noise decibel measurements. The three plaintiffs reside within 1.5 miles of the data center and say the company failed to soundproof the site. "Plaintiff Garret Ostergaard stated that he had been working a third shift but had to move to second shift because of the constant noise affecting his sleep. He stated that there is noise all day and night, and bright lights coming from the facility," a court document says. The lawsuit also cites a local news article, which notes, "Beth Kane, a resident living one mile from Defendant's Data Center, stated, 'It's a nightmare. I've lived there five years. I want to leave. It's no longer fun. I've got headaches. We've got box fans running in order to cover the sound at night.'" The lawsuit demands that the court compel Microsoft to provide relief, including paying damages for causing "the loss of use and enjoyment and the diminution of property values." Microsoft didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. But the company previously told local media outlets it's been aware of the noise complaints after holding a public Q&A session about the data center. "The company remains committed to being a good neighbor in Southeast Wisconsin and working closely with local and state partners as it assesses continued growth in the region," Microsoft also wrote in a blog post. But even so, the US has been experiencing growing public backlash over the costs of AI, including rising energy prices and fears of future job loss to automation.

The 'world's most powerful AI data center' hit with massive class-action lawsuit -- Wisconsin residents allege noise and extreme light pollution at $7.3 billion Microsoft mega-facility

* Residents near Milwaukee, Wisconsin, file class-action lawsuit against Microsoft over "excessive noise" from its Fairwater AI data center * Complainants also report light pollution from the facility * Microsoft says it has taken "immediate steps to address the sound concerns" While it is an inherently useful technology, AI comes with many challenges, not least the impact of data centers on the landscape and local environment. Microsoft's new $7.3 billion AI data center in Milwaukee is demonstrating some of those challenges, having amassed complaints during construction and now a class-action lawsuit from Wisconsin residents. Residents of Sturtevant, near Milwaukee, Wisconsin, are situated just 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the Mount Pleasant "Fairwater 1" datacenter, which came online in April. Following noise during construction, the installation itself has since been blamed for "not only excessive, but consistent and pervasive" noise. Over 1,000 homes in the Mount Pleasant area are affected, and these are represented by three citizens who filed the lawsuit. How noisy is Microsoft's Fairwater 1 data center? According to the filing, "Through its operation and maintenance of the Data Center, Defendant has emitted, and continues to emit, unreasonable and excessive noise onto Plaintiffs' properties, thereby causing property damages through private nuisance and negligence." While no formal test results have been published, one resident stated in the lawsuit "It sounded similar to the whirring engine of a freight train parked nearby. We heard it 24 hours a day, and eventually realized it was coming from the Microsoft campus." This followed a period of six months when previous issues concerning noise and dust had subsided. Meanwhile, a resident told Wisconsin Public Radio that light pollution is a problem, noting ""It was so dark out there, you could see all the stars, and now you have a hard time seeing the stars with all the light." The filing (reported by Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) notes that the Fairwater 1 data center "generates significant noise pollution from diesel generators and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, including chillers, cooling towers, air-handling units, and condenser fans." Microsoft is yet to respond As the demand for cloud AI increases, more installations like Fairwater 1 (up to 15 Microsoft data centers are planned for the location) need to be developed. So far, Microsoft has responded to the previous complaints about noise and dust with street cleaners, but these concerns have made it into the filing, along with accusations that Microsoft failed to "implement adequate acoustic barriers, shields, or walls that absorb, mitigate, and/or prevent the escape of noise, thereby resulting in the offsite emission of excessive noise beyond its property." At the other side of this argument, however, are the 375 employees at Microsoft's Mount Pleasant facilities, many of whom live locally. While Microsoft is yet to respond to the lawsuit, it previously posted on its blog that it will "continue to work on short-term mitigation, and [...] also install additional sound reduction components and continue to monitor sound at the site." Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds.