Prompts now, pollutants later: Report claims data centers are harming the environment to the tune of $25 billion and inducing a debt on the health of current and future generations

An assortment of icons denoting economic harm and digital data processing overlayed on an image of computer servers.

• Data centers and their energy requirements are causing pollution
• This pollution is causing knock-on costs for healthcare and the environment
• A cost of as much as $25 billion is theorized, but it could be higher

The surge of AI and its demand for data centers could be costing the US economy $25 billion in environmental damage and causing serious health complications for those living in the vicinity of data centers.