Data center expansion and the AI backlash

Opposition to AI data centers has become the hot 2026 campaign issue. But many data centers are already being built, especially in places with less capacity to object. Will this moment be the start of feasible AI regulation or just empower some to shift development out of their area? Vasundhara Kaul finds that data centers tend to be built in minority communities and places hurting for economic development. Daniel Schiff joins us to discuss the broader implications of the backlash for AI governance. They both say better regulation is possible but does run up against a traditional political constraint: that the powerful tend to offload harms to those without the power to object.