Technology, AI & Cyber
Microsoft data centre protest halts Amsterdam work
Several hundred activists opposed to a Microsoft data centre occupied its construction site in Amsterdam on Friday, halting work there for the day.
The climate and justice collective Geef Tegengas and the environmental group Fossielvrij entered the site in the Sloterdijk district after a call for a two-day protest across Europe.
Activists climbed barrier fences despite a police presence, shouted political slogans and sprayed anti-Microsoft messages on walls under construction. Dutch news agency ANP reported that police arrested between 150 and 200 protesters, while others left voluntarily.
Geef Tegengas spokesman Nathan Timmer said the data centre would use large amounts of energy and water. He also argued that it would be used to facilitate AI warfare and what he called the “genocide” in Gaza.
AI data centres require large amounts of electricity and, in many cases, water for cooling. Campaign groups under the name Stop Dirty Data Centers have called for a pause in construction of such sites. Microsoft did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Uncertainty notes
The number of arrests was reported by ANP and was given as a range.
Microsoft’s response to the activists’ claims was not available in the supplied material.
The activists’ claims about the centre’s future energy use, water use and military role were not independently established in the supplied material.
Source
AFP news report published on .