AI companies have told ministers they have 12 months to head off public opposition to datacentres in the UK or risk US-style protests that could threaten their construction. Successive dry summers and rising energy bills are increasing public scrutiny of plans for the huge computer warehouses that are used to train and run AI models, says a submission to the Labour government from a group including the AI infrastructure companies Nvidia, Microsoft and Cisco. Amid increasing anti-datacentre activism in the US and Europe, they are calling on ministers to create a "compact" that would show how communities can benefit from hosting datacentres, including allowing councils that host them to retain more tax revenues. The move by the Sovereign AI Leadership (SAIL) taskforce reflects rising concern among tech companies that arguments that have blocked datacentre developments in parts of the US are taking hold in Britain. Microsoft has promised to invest $30bn (£22bn) in UK AI infrastructure.

The development of a huge AI datacentre hailed by the UK government has received a fresh setback after Microsoft pulled out of the project over concerns about power supplies. The development by the British company Nscale, heralded by ministers as the country's largest AI datacentre when it was announced in 2025, was planned to open at Loughton in Essex next year. Revealed: UK's multibillion AI drive is built on'phantom investments' Doubts had already emerged about the scheme after the Guardian revealed in March that the location was still an operational scaffolding yard . Now there are further concerns after Microsoft, one of its largest planned customers and expected to have been the anchor tenant, informed the company that it was pulling the plug on its agreement. It comes a month after it emerged that power supply problems meant the project would face a lengthy wait before coming online.

The biggest threat from AI is the sense that we have no say in it. The tech bros and their highly paid sock puppets are banking on us giving in to their'inevitability doctrine'. O f all the drivers of the populist wave, one of the most powerful is the sense of inevitability that surrounds what we are told is the march of progress. While the US clings on to its status as the oldest constitutional democracy, the unholy alliance between the tech overlords and the White House is creating its own AI reality untethered to the will of the people . On the velocity and trajectory of the technology, Trump and the tech overlords have determined we must hit the accelerator and dispense with guardrails to "win" an ill-defined race to build a god in a box. This reckless exercise of power from a waning empire has created its own reality for all of us.

Google has been ordered to temporarily stop work on two datacentres in Finland after failing to do the necessary environmental impact assessments on its construction sites. The planned datacentres in Muhos and Kajanni are part of a €13bn (£11bn) project across multiple sites in northern Finland by the technology company amid huge demand for space to house online infrastructure. It comes after it emerged that Tuike Finland Oy, the company representing Google, had felled 330 hectares (815 acres) of forest in Muhos without completing an environmental impact assessment (EIA). In Kajaani, the company has reportedly been logging across just under 200 hectares (494 acres) of land. The Finnish Association for Nature Conservation said the sites had been reduced to "sand", blaming the oversights on the "overheated" market for new datacentres.

Denver Kanowski believes the datacentre to be built to power Anthropic's Claude will go beyond harming the environment by disconnecting people from the things that really matter. Denver Kanowski believes the datacentre to be built to power Anthropic's Claude will go beyond harming the environment by disconnecting people from the things that really matter. Rural Queenslanders have seen gas projects come and go - but a 725-hectare datacentre poses a whole new level of'stupidity' Residents of Dalby may soon live beside a $31bn datacentre. The premier sees'opportunity' for the state - but others fear AI's global creep From the veranda on his bush block, Denver Kanowski has watched resources companies come and go from rural Queensland for 70 years. The home cost him $800, and lets him live how he likes, in nature.

Protests have sprung up across the UK in opposition to the construction of datacentres, including outside the Scottish parliament. Protests have sprung up across the UK in opposition to the construction of datacentres, including outside the Scottish parliament. Former chancellor, now senior figure at OpenAI, says UK needs datacentres to maintain'sovereignty' over AI tech Datacentre nimbys are holding Britain back, George Osborne has said in reaction to nationwide protests about the giant water-and energy-guzzling structures. The former Tory chancellor is now the head of AI for countries at OpenAI, the developer of ChatGPT. His job is to represent the company to governments around the world and he also has a role in enabling the building of datacentres and other infrastructure.

Christine Lagarde asserted that Europe must develop its own AI technology and build more datacentres in order to nullify the threat of being cut off by the US or China. Christine Lagarde asserted that Europe must develop its own AI technology and build more datacentres in order to nullify the threat of being cut off by the US or China. Europe's dilemma over AI was rendered in stark terms this week. The head of the continent's central bank, Christine Lagarde, said Europeans have two options: shun the technology and lose out on growth; or embrace it and become dependent on tools developed by the US and China. The great debate over AI safety that has erupted in recent days threatens to make the choice moot.

Andrew Hastie has called for artificial intelligence that is run by Australians rather than Americans. Andrew Hastie has called for artificial intelligence that is run by Australians rather than Americans. Andrew Hastie says AI advised him to reply'congratulations!' to man who planned to end life with assisted dying Liberal MP speaks of AI's shortcomings as cyber chief tells inquiry the tech is needed to fend off'highly capable malicious cyber actors' When a man with a terminal illness wrote to his local MP Andrew Hastie, telling him he planned on ending his own life with voluntary assisted dying, Microsoft Copilot suggested Hastie reply with "congratulations!", "great to hear from you" or "that is wonderful news!". Hastie shared the episode at a parliamentary inquiry on Friday to underline the shortcomings of the American-run software as he called for AI run by Australians. The hearing offered the some of the most detailed explanations of the Albanese government's desire to bring Anthropic and OpenAI to Australia, in the face of calls to slow them down or shut them out.

Wed 16 Sep 2026 07.55 EDTLast modified on Wed 16 Sep 2026 07.56 EDT Large-scale datacentres will face mandatory environmental assessments before they can go ahead, the Scottish government has announced, amid growing public concern about the impact of the AI boom. Ahead of a vote on a moratorium on new hyperscale datacentres in Holyrood on Wednesday, the Scottish government has tightened rules for new projects by requiring any above 50MW to submit environmental impact assessments, but stopped short of agreeing to an outright halt. Scotland has seen a boom in planning applications for large datacentres as global investment in AI infrastructure has exploded. Datacentres are critical for storing and processing data used by AI. One scheme in Auchtertool, Fife, has been billed as the second-largest in the world, and is among more than 20 large datacentres proposed so far.

Anthropic's plan to build a datacentre in Queensland was announced by premier David Crisafulli on Wednesday. Anthropic's plan to build a datacentre in Queensland was announced by premier David Crisafulli on Wednesday. Premier describes deal as'major win' that will deliver more jobs for the state and put more energy into its grid Anthropic, the AI giant behind the large language model Claude, has done a deal to lease the site of its first Australian datacentre in western Queensland . The state premier, David Crisafulli, announced the decision in parliament on Wednesday. The proposed Western Downs digital park is to be built by Singapore-based Zerra DC near Dalby, north-west of Toowoomba, and will connect to the Braemar power station.