Opponents of AI data center construction have blocked or delayed a record number of projects worth nearly $130 billion so far this year, according to a recent study.
At least 75 projects worth about $130 billion have been blocked or delayed from January through March across the country as a result of data center opponents, according to a Data Center Watch study obtained by NBC News.
The authors of the study further noted that this hinderance of AI data centers is the most on record in a three-month period since they began tracking the matter in 2023.
“The quarter reflected a structural shift rather than a cyclical spike: communities have internalized an opposition playbook, legislative sessions introduced formal regulatory uncertainty, and the number of active opposition groups more than doubled to 833 across 49 states,” the study read.
Moreover, the total number and value of data centers that have been obstructed during the first quarter of this year are roughly the same total for all of 2025, the authors added.
As Breitbart News reported last month, AI data center construction has recently become a major political issue, with a recent Gallup poll showing that a strong majority of Americans oppose AI data centers being constructed in their local area.
Those averse to the construction of AI data centers cite environmental and quality-of-life concerns, as well as noise, air, and water pollution as reasons for their opposition.
Earlier this week, country music star Brad Paisley called on citizens to block the proposed construction of an AI data center that is planned to be built 50 yards from the Nashville Zoo, calling it “an absolute nightmare scenario,” adding, “It would be an enormous monstrosity.”
Gallup, meanwhile, has predicted that AI infrastructure “could become an important campaign issue in local and state elections this year,” and that politicians in favor of data center construction “are likely taking a politically risky stance.”
The recent Data Center Watch study also noted that legislative pushes for moratoriums on the constructing AI data centers skyrocketed in the first quarter of 2026, and were sponsored by lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.
In just the first six weeks of 2026, more than 300 bills were introduced in statehouses across the country, which the authors called “a clear shift from incentive-focused policies toward regulatory oversight as the scale of energy demands became clearer.”
Additionally, the research found that the number of active grassroots groups opposing the centers across the country more than doubled from 396 at the end of 2025 to 833 by March. The authors added that the states with the most opposition groups were Maryland, Ohio, and Texas.
“In some cases, opposition mobilized before any project was officially filed, the mere rumor of a data center was enough to trigger organized resistance,” the authors observed.
AI data centers continue to become a major issue in political races around the country. Breitbart News social media director Wynton Hall has written his instant bestseller Code Red: The Left, the Right, China, and the Race to Control AI to serve as the definitive guide on how the MAGA movement can create positions on AI that benefit humanity without handing control of our nation to the leftists of Silicon Valley or allowing the Chinese to take over the world.
Alana Mastrangelo is a reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her on Facebook and X at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.