The anti-data center fight shocked me in how they were able to squash a corporate demand with bipartisan-support. Granted, it was a very extreme demand (wasting extreme amounts of electricity and water with no real output beyond metrics, lies, and deepfake child porn). The focus doesn’t matter as much as the methods and the changed outcome.
Whatever happens with USA democracy in the future; this nonpartisan grassroots internet-guided movement worked and I believe we ought to remember that. Even if the USA becomes a one-party dictatorship, there will always be local and state governments, and I believe the internet will survive enough to allow speakers to project similar demands.
Perhaps the next movements could be for a Medicare Public Option; or local-run at-cost Commissary grocers; or removing “forced arbitration”.
the nimby type i am ok with
Consequences are good. But what can be done to stop the data centers? Or the people fueling the demand by continuing to let Alexa shop for them on the Amazon app.
They’re actually slowly shutting down Alexa because she is deeply unprofitable, even for AI training it seems.
Demand has always been artificial because they force it into everything.
True… but let’s not pretend millions out there are happy they don’t have to think anymore and ask their favorite slop machine for whatever
If an app maker turns something on by default and people use that thing, that isn’t “demand”. It’s just using the app as it’s designed. Shitty product managers/leaders think that people use features like that because they actively want it, whereas disingenuous product managers/leaders understand the power of deception that comes from making features opt-out rather than opt-in.
Actual demand for AI (or anything) is only truly measurable when people go out of their way to use it, not from slapping it on top of something they were already using anyways.
Well if one is currently being built near you, all it takes is a bag of sugar in the concrete the prevent it from setting
