Pro-Data Center Party in Washington, D.C., Draws More Than 1,000 Attendees
An opinion article describes a pro-data-center party held in downtown Washington, D.C., attended by more than 1,000 people and organized by technology advocates. The event promoted data-center construction and AI development while acknowledging public concerns about water use, electricity demand, noise and visual impacts.
More than 1,000 people RSVP'd for Data After Dark, a pro-data-center event held at PubKey in Washington, D.C. Organizer Jonas Du of Pirate Wires cohosted the gathering with R Street Institute fellow Ed Tarnowski and Young Voices CEO Casey Given. The event included industry supporters, journalists, policy advocates and protesters, with some demonstrators briefly interrupting the program.
The event's speakers and sponsors argued that the United States should continue building data centers to support artificial intelligence and compete with China. Strata founder and CEO David Meyer urged supporters to address reasonable public concerns, while journalist Jasmine Sun called for better public education about AI. The article also discusses concerns over data-center water consumption, grid strain, noise and aesthetics, but presents innovation and improved cooling technology as preferable to halting construction.
The organizers said they hope to take similar events to cities including New York, San Francisco, Miami, Austin and Los Angeles. The article is an opinion piece by Natalie Sandoval arguing that data-center supporters are sincere advocates facing substantial public skepticism rather than reporting on a specific construction project.