Amazon pledged $1 billion to data-centre towns. Over 100 local bans are being weighed.
Amazon Web Services will spend more than $1 billion over five years, the Associated Press reported on 2 October.
Community colleges and household energy upgrades are among the projects it will fund. Amazon also said it will stop using non-disclosure agreements with government partners on data-centre projects.
The opposition extends well beyond Amazon. More than 100 moratoriums are under consideration across the US, the AP reported, and local campaigns have already blocked at least 45 developments in 27 states, worth $68 billion, according to CBS News. Those figures cover the whole industry.
AWS chief executive Matt Garman warned that "a lapse in our nation's focus or resolve could put us behind" in AI. He said Amazon had already spent more than $1 billion in host communities over the past three years.
Spread evenly, the new pledge amounts to about $200 million a year. Amazon expects roughly $220 billion in company-wide capital spending in 2026, the AP reported. Set against one year of that spending, the annual share of the pledge is below 0.1%.
The reports do not say which AWS regions or capacity plans, if any, the local opposition has delayed.
Sources
Our file on Amazon
- 25 Sept
Amazon cut over 30,000 jobs. Now recruiters want former staff back for AI.
- 23 Sept
A Texas woman counted 52 Amazon drones overhead in one day.
- 22 Sept
Amazon blocked Meta's AI assistant from buying on Amazon. It launched 12 days earlier.
- 21 Sept
Amazon's shopping bot may bury US-made goods, two senators told the FTC.
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