Microsoft data center breached by protesters

Microsoft’s Amsterdam data center has been stormed by protesters, marking the start of their two-day rally against rapid data center build-out.

In Amsterdam on Friday, more than 100 activists gathered at the construction site of a Microsoft AI data center, 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 data center".

"These data centers 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 Centers, 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.

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

Other planned actions include a march in Dublin, a protest outside the parliament building in Warsaw, and a demonstration against a different Microsoft data center 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 centers 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 the concentration of power by private and big tech.

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

Stop Dirty Data Centers says it is not anti-progress or calling for existing data centers 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 centers 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 are no electricity blackouts because of data centers, 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 data centers, and Microsoft pulled out of a UK data center project that was hit by infrastructure delays.

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