The reversal marks a stark departure for the Stratos Project, which O’Leary initially touted as a $100 billion vision for artificial intelligence infrastructure. Days after publicly labeling demands from Utah Senate President J. Stuart Adams as outrageous, the financier conceded to cutting the site’s total acreage in half. He is now promising to implement advanced water-recycling technology, pledging to divert any surplus resources directly back into the Great Salt Lake to appease local critics.
Kevin O’Leary Retreats on Utah AI Project After Public Backlash
After dismissing local opposition as an nuisance, Shark Tank investor Kevin O’Leary has slashed the footprint of his massive Utah data center project by 75%. The abrupt pivot follows intense pressure from state leadership and widespread community fury over the facility’s potential impact on the struggling Great Salt Lake.
O’Leary acknowledged the strategic failure in a recent interview with ABC4, admitting he botched the community engagement process. The project, which faced immediate scrutiny over water consumption, underscores a broader trend of resistance toward industrial-scale computing sites. With national support for local data center development hovering at just 27% according to recent Gallup polling, O’Leary is already encountering similar friction for a separate development in Canada.
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