For some time, a massive buildout of AI infrastructure has papered over signs of faltering in the rest of the economy. AI data centers are spreading like wildfire, designed to power a range of “free” AI tools.
But as Dan Howells and Todd Larsen argue this week, those tools are anything but free. Because the data centers that power them are sucking up water and electricity, raising power bills, and keeping America — and its biggest tech companies, most of whom pledged long ago to go carbon neutral — hooked on fossil fuels.
AI is on a crash course with basic climate realities, they warn. But it doesn’t have to be. A little regulation — including making sure AI is powered by renewables, among other things — could go a long way.
Speaking of that shaky economy, President Trump’s attacks on the Federal Reserve keep sending stocks ricocheting as investors worry about political meddling. But the attacks also fit another pattern, Dedrick Asante-Muhammad warns this week: repeated attacks on qualified Black leaders, like Fed Governor Dr. Lisa Cook.
Finally, in another dispatch on the “real economy,” Alexis Cortes shares what the GOP’s massive safety net cuts will mean for families like hers.
New This Week…
Communities Pay the Price for ‘Free’ AI Tools | Dan Howells and Todd Larsen
AI data centers produce massive noise pollution, use huge amounts of water, and keep us hooked on fossil fuels.
Trump’s Attacks on the Fed Fit a Troubling Pattern | Dedrick Asante-Muhammad
By attacking the Federal Reserve’s independence, President Trump is putting the economy in danger — and attacking yet another qualified Black leader.
My Family Just Got Back on Our Feet. Trump’s Bill Could Knock Us Over Again. | Alexis Cortes
Those tax cuts for the wealthy are financed on the backs of families like yours and mine.
In Case You Missed It…
CEOs Are Getting Richer. Everyone Else Is Falling Behind. | Sarah Anderson
At the 100 largest low-wage corporations, the average CEO now makes 632 times more than a typical worker. And Americans are fed up.
Let’s Fund Real Public Safety, Not ICE | Sonali Kolhatkar
We should be funding schools, health care, and education, not $50,000 signing bonuses for ICE agents.
Employers Want to Trap You in Dead-End Jobs. Will Trump’s FTC Help Them? | Elizabeth Wilkins
I worked for the Federal Trade Commission when we banned employers from trapping workers with “noncompete clauses.” Now that victory is in danger.
The Country of My Birth Is Losing Its Democracy. It Can Happen Here Too. | Sulma Arias
Without a community, we look to “strongmen” to save us. What we really need is each other.
