Property Buyouts and Legal Waivers
A subsidiary of Elon Musk’s xAI is offering to buy up homes in a Mississippi neighborhood, as long as residents don’t join a lawsuit targeting the company’s nearby data center and power plant, according to reports. A realtor going door-to-door in the Southaven neighborhood reportedly told one resident that xAI plans to purchase 418 homes, adding that 18 homeowners already have plans to sell. People who rent homes in the area report they’re already being forced out after their landlords agreed to sell.
xAI is buying out homeowners who promise not to sue over data center noise
xAI and its subsidiary MZX are reportedly offering to buy hundreds of homes around Southaven, Mississippi.
xAI’s Southaven, Mississippi data center.
A recent report includes a letter received by several households recently, reading in part:
MZX denies all of the allegations against it. However, because MZX also requires property for its business purposes, MZX, through its real estate broker, is offering to purchase real estate in Southaven in exchange for, among other things, a release of all claims related to the lawsuit. If you decide to accept MZX’s offer, MZX will ask you to sign a real estate contract under which you will agree to execute a separate release agreement at the closing of the real estate transaction. Importantly, by executing the Release Agreement, you will be releasing possible claims you might have related to the Southaven Plant, including any claims you may have in connection with ongoing litigation. After executing the Release Agreement, you will be unable to recover any damages or other relief from the lawsuit, and you will also be unable to bring claims on your own behalf.
Community Opposition and Environmental Scrutiny
xAI offered to purchase the homes if the owners don’t join a lawsuit filed by residents who accuse the company’s massive data center and gas-fired turbines of emitting constant noise and vibrations. xAI has ramped up its data center buildout over the past couple of years, constructing sprawling facilities in Memphis while bringing its infrastructure and an accompanying power plant to Southaven, located just over the Tennessee border.
Growing opposition to artificial intelligence data centers is putting pressure on local officials. Local governing bodies have debated ordinances to pause construction temporarily. Meanwhile, the company has faced potential civil penalties for environmental law violations, along with claims of unpaid bills for work performed at the Memphis and Southaven sites.
In addition to a lawsuit filed by residents, xAI is also facing legal action from civil rights organizations, which accuse the company of operating dozens of unpermitted methane gas turbines in Southaven. A federal judge previously blocked attempts to dismiss the lawsuit.
