AI infrastructure companies have told the UK government they have 12 months to win over public opinion on datacentres before protests in the US style threaten construction.
The request comes in a submission to the Labour government from the Sovereign AI Leadership (SAIL) taskforce, which includes Nvidia, Microsoft and Cisco. The group argues that successive dry summers and rising energy bills are increasing public scrutiny of the huge warehouses that train and run AI models.
The companies want ministers to create a "compact" showing how communities can benefit from hosting datacentres, including letting councils that host them keep more tax revenues. The group warns that arguments that have blocked datacentre projects in parts of the US are beginning to take hold in Britain.
In the US, SAIL says, organised local opposition has stopped fully permitted projects and moratoriums have been announced even in otherwise pro-growth states. The group believes the concern runs deeper than AI itself: distrust of corporate and government promises, fear of stranded assets and electricity costs. "Britain has a window – we think of roughly 12 months – to build a compact that earns public consent before that pattern takes hold," it said.
The taskforce calls for a clear framework for councils and mayors, with recommended terms for local benefit, including an indicative contribution scaled to a site's size. Microsoft has promised to invest $30bn (about £22bn) in UK AI infrastructure, has built a datacentre in Acton, London and is building one in Newport.
Not everyone is convinced. Joseph Miller of PauseAI UK said people would feel "undignified" to be bought off by huge tech companies. Kat Jones of Action to Protect Rural Scotland said firms had "missed the boat" and pointed to 15 campaigns in Scotland. Donald Campbell of Foxglove argued that letting councils keep more business rates would mean the tech giants "would not pay a penny more".
The government said datacentres should create British jobs, invest in host communities and prioritise clean power. It has already announced that councils hosting datacentres in AI growth zones in England can keep all the additional business rates they generate.
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