Published 3 days ago

The Hidden Cost of AI Data Centers: Eminent Domain, Rural Land, and the Power Problem

Every time you prompt an AI model, somewhere a server spins up. That server needs electricity—lots of it. And that electricity needs to travel from power plants to data centers, often through rural communities that didn’t sign up for the ride.

A family in Georgia just learned this the hard way. Their story isn’t about technology. It’s about power lines, property rights, and what happens when infrastructure expansion treats homes as obstacles.

3 mins read

5 sections

Key Highlights

AI data centers now drive the majority of new power demand in parts of Georgia
Eminent domain battles reveal how AI infrastructure collides with rural land rights
AI adoption decisions increasingly carry real-world grid and community consequences

“We Belong Here”

Georgia Power is building a new transmission line to feed the state’s growing energy appetite. The company estimates 70-80% of that new demand comes from data centers. The rest covers residential and commercial growth. Either way, the grid needs more muscle.

That expansion cuts through more than 300 parcels of land. Some are residential properties. One belongs to a family whose home was built when the current owner was a child.

“It’s our family. We belong here,” Brown told CBS News. She described the property as “true generational wealth.” Now, she says, “it’s being stripped from us.”

The Eminent Domain Ultimatum

Georgia Power reached an agreement with the family—but not one they wanted. The alternative was worse. The utility could have pursued eminent domain, a legal process that lets private property be taken for projects deemed to serve a public purpose. Compensation is required. Consent isn’t.

Brown’s take is blunt: “To us it’s theft. It’s literally a billion dollar company stealing land from smaller people, people who can’t fight back. We don’t have the money to fight Georgia Power.”

The company’s spokesperson, Holly Lovett, said eminent domain is “always a last resort for us and it’s something we never want to do.” Georgia Power maintains it handled the process responsibly.

Brown disagrees. “You can’t tear down 35 miles of rural Georgia and it not hurt something or somebody. And to say that you’re doing it in the name of data centers is a slap in the face to us, our community, our animals.”

What Apology Looks Like

A few months ago, Brown took her story to TikTok. She started sharing accounts from others in similar situations. She knows it’s too late for her home. She doesn’t want it to be too late for anyone else.

“My mom wants an apology. She wants an apology from Georgia Power. That’s it,” Brown said. “For an entire year, they have bullied her and there is no sorry.”

When CBS News asked whether Georgia Power would apologize, the company said it has “worked hard to be transparent, negotiate in good faith” and “make the process as easy as possible.” It declined to name which companies are behind the data centers, citing safety and security reasons.

What This Means for AI Adoption

This isn’t an isolated story. It’s a pattern that will repeat wherever data center expansion meets private land. The AI boom runs on infrastructure that has to go somewhere—and that somewhere is often someone’s home.

For founders and teams evaluating AI tools, the ethics conversation usually stops at model bias, data privacy, or job displacement. But the supply chain matters too. The models you use, the APIs you call, the cloud compute you rent—all of it touches physical land, physical grids, and physical communities.

The question isn’t whether AI will expand. It will. The question is whether the people living in its path get a seat at the table or just a knock on the door.