OpenAI Says It Will Call Its Data Centers 'Compute Campuses,' as Breitbart Notes Public Opinion Souring Ahead of the Midterms
A spokesperson told Business Insider the new term better fits the scale of the sites. A Pew poll found 54% of Americans think AI data centers are bad for the environment, and Meta, Amazon and Microsoft are pledging money to host communities.
OpenAI plans to start calling its AI data centers "compute campuses," a spokesperson confirmed to Business Insider on Sunday, according to Breitbart.
The company's reason. "Compute campuses better describes the scale and role of the infrastructure we're building for AI," the spokesperson said, adding that the sites are "long-term investments in computing, energy infrastructure and skilled work." The company says it wants host communities "to help shape it and share in the opportunities it creates."
The timing. Breitbart's Lucas Nolan argues the rebrand is no accident. He cites a Pew Research poll finding 54 percent of Americans believe AI data centers are bad for the environment, and says the facilities have become a flashpoint for voters heading into Tuesday's elections. Meta, Amazon and Microsoft have each pledged millions to communities and schools near their data centers, part of an industry effort to blunt local opposition to projects that use a lot of power and water.
A second Altman story. Breitbart also recalls Sam Altman's recent comments, on the YouTube channel Cheeky Pint, that individuals shouldn't hold so much of the world's limited DRAM in their own computers. In the quote Breitbart carries, he called it "quite terrible" to have memory "sitting in their own computer and being used 5 percent of the time." Breitbart's own view is that Altman is arguing for the infrastructure his company depends on.
What to keep in mind. The rebrand is confirmed by OpenAI to Business Insider. The motive is Breitbart's reading, not the company's statement. We are relying on Breitbart's account of the Pew figure and have not checked the poll.