Earlier this year in Festus, Missouri, a municipal government meeting packed hundreds of local residents into a high school gymnasium. The council in this river city of about 14,000 convened to consider the approval of a $6 billion project to build an AI data center.
For hours, residents approached the microphone one by one, armed with simple questions. How would the data center affect their energy bills? How would this sprawling project impact land values and water usage?
The city council answered by gesturing toward the developer’s promises—and ultimately voted to approve the project. A few weeks later, voters provided their own answer. They threw out every single incumbent council member up for reelection.
As people debate the moral valence of artificial intelligence, many are asking the wrong questions. AI is not inherently a blessing or a curse; it is a tool that can be used for good or for ill. This means that whether the technology improves the lives of working people or not depends on the choices we make now.
We cannot afford to leave those choices to the venture capitalists and the engineers in Palo Alto. If we want to lead the world on technology while preserving our values—of individual dignity, of vocational work, of strong communities—we will listen to the people in Festus. We will listen to the people who feel like they are being handed the bill for Big Tech’s dystopian future.
