Data centers are crucial for AI development, driving massive investments from tech giants and government support. These facilities have a significant environmental impact, consuming vast amounts of electricity and water. In Georgia, a Meta data center's construction near the Morris home led to dust storms, water pipe clogs, and a decline in property value. Concerns are rising about the strain on local water resources as demand surges. The build-out of data centers contributes substantially to U.S. GDP growth, but at a cost to consumers through increased electricity prices. States offer incentives, attracting data center construction and potentially increasing reliance on fossil fuels. Nationally, data center demand requires substantial new energy generation capacity, equivalent to numerous large dams. These AI factories, as they are being called, also pose challenges for surrounding communities due to light pollution and noise. Local opposition is growing, with some communities enacting moratoriums on new data center developments. The race for AI supremacy is creating powerful infrastructure with profound, and often negative, local consequences.