Activists breach Microsoft data centre construction site as protests spread in Europe

By Toby Sterling

AMSTERDAM, Nov 6 (Reuters) - Protesters broke into the construction site of a Microsoft data centre in Amsterdam on Friday at the start of two days of rallies that are part of a growing global backlash over the rapid build-out of computing power needed for AI.

Activist groups have announced actions in 16 countries on Friday and Saturday, according to the "Stop Dirty Data Centres" coalition, which is rallying environmental groups and digital rights campaigns behind calls to pause large-scale construction.

In Amsterdam on Friday, more than 100 activists gathered at the construction site of a Microsoft AI data centre, marching arm in arm before breaking into the site, climbing cranes, hanging balloons and dancing while police stood by. Some carried placards with messages reading: "Screw your datacentre".

"These data centres are destroying our world. It's becoming uninhabitable because of all the resources they consume. That's why we're here today," protester Sam van der Beek said.

Site owner Pure Data Centres, which plans to invest more than $1 billion and is backed by Brookfield-owned Oaktree, said it was committed to engagement with local stakeholders.

"We respectfully ask those on site to leave safely and engage with us in dialogue about the development and any concerns they may have," it said.

Other planned actions include a march in Dublin, a protest outside the parliament building in Warsaw, and a demonstration against a different Microsoft data centre in Denmark.

Microsoft said it understood that people had strong feelings about the project and respected their right to express them peacefully but did not condone any unlawful actions.

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Pushback is growing from Spain to India and the United States, where technology stocks fell sharply on Thursday over concern that Democratic control of Congress could mean tougher regulation curtails the AI boom.

Campaigners say data centres pressure electricity and water supplies, compete with housing and other businesses for scarce resources and threaten climate goals. They also point to job losses and potential risks to personal and national security from private and big tech concentrating power.

Technology companies argue that data centres are essential to meeting global demand for artificial intelligence and cloud computing and provide critical infrastructure for businesses, governments and consumers.

Stop Dirty Data Centres says it is not anti-progress or calling for existing data centres to be closed but that major construction should be halted until governments establish clearer rules.

Europe is divided between its ambition to catch up with the US and Asia on AI to boost productivity and to maintain what are generally more stringent controls and public protections.

Speaking to Reuters on Thursday, EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen said Europe needed more data centres to power AI development, though she added it needed to be done with care.

"AI, of course, is a super important technology and we need to have our own capacity," Virkkunen said, pointing to investments being made in chip-making capacity, AI startups and a plan to build out gigafactories around the region.

However, she added, "it's very important for citizens that they can trust that their energy bills are not skyrocketing and there's not electricity blackouts because of data centres, or they are not destroying the environment with these projects."

A Google project in Finland faces a criminal probe over land clearances, Italy and Portugal are tightening environmental regulation for datacentres, and Microsoft pulled out of a UK data centre project that was hit by infrastructure delays.

The Netherlands has about 200 data centres either planned, under construction or in operation.

(Reporting by Toby Sterling; Editing by Adam Jourdan and Philippa Fletcher)