Inside Memphis: Elon Musk's Colossal Polluting Problem

The establishment of Elon Musk's xAI facility in Memphis, particularly its controversial use of gas turbines, has sparked intense concern among local residents and environmentalists. With recent reports correlating the facility’s emissions to respiratory health issues, the situation has raised a range of concerns about the increasingly severe air quality in the surrounding areas, particularly in historically marginalized communities like Boxtown.

Boxtown Residents Face Worsening Health Crisis

Just days after the release of xAI's Grok 4, Alexis Humphreys, a resident in Boxtown, faced her first severe asthma attack in 15 years. For the residents in the predominantly Black neighborhood of Boxtown, this incident was no coincidence. Local activists argue that the air pollution from the 35 unpermitted gas turbines needed to operate Musk's supercomputer, referred to as Colossus, is exacerbating existing health problems.

Prior air quality analyses conducted by researchers at the University of Tennessee indicated that nitrogen dioxide levels have surged since the xAI operations began, with peak levels soaring by up to 79% in areas near the data center. These findings correlate with local environmental concerns, particularly given Memphis’s existing challenges with air pollution and a history marked by industrial exploitation.

Austin Dalgo, a primary care physician in South Memphis, labeled the increase in nitrogen dioxide levels as “alarming,” noting that the emissions pose significant health risks, especially to vulnerable populations such as children and the elderly. He stated, “The xAI turbines are leading to a public health crisis in Memphis by releasing nitrogen oxides—pollutants known to directly harm the lungs.”

Plans for Larger Facility Intensify Community Fears

Despite opposition from community members and environmental groups, xAI and its associates, including the Greater Memphis Chamber of Commerce, continue to maintain that the turbines comply with legal standards and produce minimal pollution. They have stated plans to introduce cleaner models in the future to make xAI “the lowest-emitting facility in the country.” However, critics argue that such claims are dubious.

This is especially because Musk plans to build an even bigger data center just a few miles away from the first data center in Whitehaven. There have already been 66 gas turbines delivered to the new million square feet site, fueling more concern about the air pollution that this site will cause.

Following community frustrations, the NAACP has signaled intentions to file a lawsuit against xAI, alleging violations of the Clean Air Act due to unpermitted operations. NAACP president Derrick Johnson reflected this sentiment by emphasizing how the community “cannot afford to normalize this kind of environmental injustice—where billion-dollar companies set up polluting operations in black neighborhoods without any permits and think they’ll get away with it because the people don’t have the power to fight back."