OpenAI's $16B data center project faces local opposition

A $16 billion data center project called 'Stargate' by OpenAI, Oracle, and other companies is planned in Saline, Michigan, covering 250 acres. The project is led by a group of developers.

About 2,400 local residents worry it will pollute water, raise electricity bills, and ruin the countryside. A local opposition leader says most people want to protect farmland and oppose big development.

A Reuters poll shows only 33% of Americans support the current pace of data center construction, and just 14% would welcome one in their neighborhood. The project faces strong local pushback.