Recent articles
October 13, 2026
Everyone Hates ‘Digger.’ It’s the Perfect Climate Movie
The deeply uncomfortable film forces audiences to confront what types of stories we tell ourselves about who has economic and political power.
www.wired.com
October 11, 2026
These Midterm Races Will Decide Data Centers’ Political Fate
From the Senate to governors’ mansions, candidates are trying to outcompete each other to be the most anti–data center in races across the US.
www.wired.com
October 7, 2026
A Startup Has a Plan to Make Water From Air Using Data Centers’ Waste Heat
Atoco’s new machines use specialized materials that can harvest water from some of the driest air on Earth without using electricity.
www.wired.com
October 4, 2026
Rural Data Centers Are in for a Big Federal Tax Break
Under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, data center projects in rural areas could be eligible for major tax benefits starting next year. Some hyperscalers do not seem eager to take the free cash.
www.wired.com
October 2, 2026
Amazon Says It's No Longer Using NDAs for Data Centers
The company announced it has stopped using secret agreements with county officials and acknowledges community backlash is leading to data center moratoriums across the country.
www.wired.com
September 27, 2026
The Data Center Backlash Should Also Be a Climate Reckoning. It Isn’t Yet
Climate groups are latching onto the data center opposition movement, but it remains to be seen if they can get people to care about the facilities’ impact on the atmosphere.
www.wired.com
September 23, 2026
A Startup Wants to Power Data Centers With ‘Supercritical’ Carbon Dioxide
The technology could strap onto existing gas turbines and make them more efficient—but it wouldn’t do away with their emissions entirely.
www.wired.com
September 20, 2026
It’s Donald Trump Versus MAGA on Data Centers
The president has doubled down on data centers and AI. His base is running in the opposite direction.
www.wired.com
September 18, 2026
The Leftist Split Over AI Doom
The left wants AI regulation. They just can't agree on what it should look like or how concerned they should be.
www.wired.com
September 16, 2026
Why It Seems Like Great White Sharks Are Overrunning Maine
While a bunch of sharks cruising the Maine coast may seem ominous, it’s actually a sign of a conservation success story.
www.wired.com
September 13, 2026
AI Agents Are Thirsty for Power
Silicon Valley is shifting away from chatbot queries toward a future filled with resource-intensive agentic AI—and it's driving the data center buildout.
www.wired.com
September 10, 2026
August 2026 Was the Hottest Month Ever Recorded: Copernicus Data
While the strengthening El Niño helped boost temperatures, climate change is the main culprit for making August so hot.
www.wired.com
September 6, 2026
Why China Is the Bogeyman Data Center Enthusiasts Just Can't Quit
Polls show that overwhelming majorities of Americans hate data centers. China makes a perfect scapegoat for tech leaders and their allies—the only problem is a lack of evidence.
www.wired.com
September 3, 2026
The 2026 El Niño Is Being ‘Supersized’ as Impacts Worsen
The World Meteorological Organization is warning that the climate phenomenon that has the Pacific running a fever will last until at least February, with dire consequences for weather worldwide.
www.wired.com
August 27, 2026
Submit Your Questions: The Great Data Center Backlash
You have questions about data centers, and WIRED has answers. Join our livestream on September 10 and our panel of experts will tell you everything you need to know.
www.wired.com
August 26, 2026
How Rising Temperatures Likely Contributed to Nepal’s Deadly Flood
Climate change is causing glaciers to retreat and become less stable, upping the odds of catastrophic collapses.
www.wired.com
August 26, 2026
Candidates Are Signing a Pact Promising Action on Data Centers and AI Safety
More than 15 politicians from across the country have signed on to the AI Pact, vowing to regulate data centers and AI. “We’ve got to get this right,” says Nebraska Senate candidate Dan Osborn.
www.wired.com
August 25, 2026
Data Centers Are Driving an Alarming Gas Power Expansion in the US
There’s no clearer sign of the data center boom than rampant gas projects that have been proposed or that are already under construction.
www.wired.com
August 21, 2026
The Super El Niño Won’t Fix the West’s Water Crisis
“People have talked about the Colorado River crisis for decades—we’re now in it,” says one expert. “Everyone you talk to is like, ‘Shit, man.’”
www.wired.com
August 14, 2026
The Real Reason Data Center Gas Power Plants Are So Dirty
A massive new gas plant in Texas will be built with much less efficient technology than regular gas plants. It’s far from the only data center power project to rely on dirty turbines.
www.wired.com
August 11, 2026
AI Could Help Fossil Fuel Companies Create More Emissions
New research finds that by making the fossil fuel industry more productive, AI could help increase carbon emissions by up to nearly 5 percent—vastly outpacing the impact of data centers.
www.wired.com
August 6, 2026
ICE’s DNA Collection Increases, SpaceX’s Rocket Crashes Into the Moon, and the AI Backlash Grows
In today’s episode of Uncanny Valley, we discuss how ICE has been collecting DNA samples of people with no criminal convictions, including children, which end up in an FBI database indefinitely.
www.wired.com
August 6, 2026
Two Fossil Fuel Companies Are Betting Big on Data Centers
Chevron and Williams are big winners in the race to power artificial intelligence as they build out gas-fired power plants and pipelines.
www.wired.com
August 5, 2026
Cougars Lower the Risks of Car Crashes by Hunting Deer
A new study shows how the big cats cause deer to move away from roads and deeper into the forest, where they pose less of a hazard to motorists.
www.wired.com
August 4, 2026
How Data Centers Broke American Politics
What the Unabomber, Steve Bannon’s tech guy, and Bernie Sanders taught me about the great data center backlash of 2026.
www.wired.com
July 31, 2026
The World Is Too Hot. El Niño Is Partly to Blame
Heat waves are simultaneously hitting Europe, North America, and Asia, driven in part by the hot waters in the tropical Pacific—and climate change.
www.wired.com
July 29, 2026
How to Bring a Geothermal Well Back from the Dead
Startup Zanskar has created one of the most productive geothermal wells in the US at a power plant that had been in decline for years.
www.wired.com
July 24, 2026
AI firms want more data centers; Trump's EPA may give neighbors less say
Rule would allow states to decide how much—if any—public input there can be.
arstechnica.com
July 23, 2026
The Trump Administration Wants to Change Public Engagement Rules for Polluters
The EPA has proposed a rule change that would let states decide how much input the public has on air pollution permits. It would be a huge boon for data centers increasingly reliant on fossil fuels.
www.wired.com
July 21, 2026
Abdul El-Sayed Is an Epidemiologist Running for Senate. His State Is a Public Health Disaster
Michigan has been at the epicenter of the wildfire smoke and explosive diarrhea outbreaks. The progressive Democrat talks to WIRED about how he would tackle the forces behind them if he’s elected.
www.wired.com