NAACP sues Elon Musk’s xAI over alleged pollution from southern data centers

By Ann Brown

Contributing Writer

(blackenterprise.com) – The NAACP has filed a lawsuit against Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company, xAI. The lawsuit accuses xAI of violating federal environmental laws by operating unpermitted gas turbines at a data center in the South.

The lawsuit, filed in Mississippi federal court on April 14, focuses on xAI’s “Colossus” and “Colossus II” data centers, which power the company’s chatbot technology. According to the complaint, the facilities use dozens of methane gas turbines that allegedly emit harmful pollutants into nearby residential communities, Futurism reports.

The NAACP alleges that xAI violates the Clean Air Act of 1970 by operating these turbines without proper permits. The civil rights organization is seeking to halt the use of the methane gas turbines and impose financial penalties on xAI for what it describes as ongoing environmental harm.

“All too often, big corporations like xAI treat our communities and families like obstacles to be pushed aside,” NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson told The Guardian. “We 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 w ith it because the people don’t have the power to fight back.”

The affected areas include neighborhoods near the Tennessee-Mississippi border, particularly around Memphis and Southaven, Tennessee. Many of these communities are historically Black and have long faced environmental challenges, including higher rates of asthma, respiratory illness, and cancer risks above the national average.

Environmental advocates say the turbines release nitrogen oxides and other toxic substances, including formaldehyde, which are known to have serious long-term health effects. In addition to air pollution, residents have also complained about persistent noise from the equipment, further impacting the quality of life.

“A data center should not be a potential death sentence for a community’s health,” Abre’ Conner, the NAACP’s director of environmental and climate justice, said in a statement. “By looking to evade clear air laws to operate dirty turbines that emit pollution and known carcinogens, these companies are following a shameful, familiar pattern: asking Black and frontline communities to bear the toxic brunt of ‘innovation.’”

xAI did not respond to the Guardian’s request for comment.

The lawsuit also calls for xAI to install what regulators describe as the “best available control technology” to limit emissions if operations continue.

This article originally published in the April 27, 2026 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.