Kevin O’Leary Said Demands to Shrink His Utah Data Center Were ‘Outrageous.’ Now He’s Admitting He ‘Screwed Up.’
After facing fierce public opposition over environmental concerns, O’Leary agreed to cut the project’s developed land by 75%.
When Kevin O’Leary won approval for his $100 billion AI data center in rural Utah last month, he looked like he had the votes and the vision. But he didn’t have public support. Facing a wave of opposition and a demand letter from Utah Senate President J. Stuart Adams, O’Leary agreed to cut the Stratos Project’s developed land by 75% and its total acreage by roughly half. “I have no choice,” he told NBC News.
The reversal was unexpected. Just days before agreeing to the cuts, The Shark Tank star called Adams’ demands “outrageous.” He has since pledged industry-leading water technology and committed to dedicating any excess water to the Great Salt Lake, addressing residents’ core concern that the facility would further drain the already shrinking lake.
Then came the mea culpa. In an interview with ABC4, O’Leary admitted, “We really screwed it up. We pissed off a lot of people, and that’s not the way I do business.” He also said he wasn’t expecting the public backlash. But a Gallup poll found only 27% of Americans support data center construction in their area. Now an O’Leary-backed data center in Canada is also getting pushback from angry residents.
When Kevin O’Leary won approval for his $100 billion AI data center in rural Utah last month, he looked like he had the votes and the vision. But he didn’t have public support. Facing a wave of opposition and a demand letter from Utah Senate President J. Stuart Adams, O’Leary agreed to cut the Stratos Project’s developed land by 75% and its total acreage by roughly half. “I have no choice,” he told NBC News.
The reversal was unexpected. Just days before agreeing to the cuts, The Shark Tank star called Adams’ demands “outrageous.” He has since pledged industry-leading water technology and committed to dedicating any excess water to the Great Salt Lake, addressing residents’ core concern that the facility would further drain the already shrinking lake.
Then came the mea culpa. In an interview with ABC4, O’Leary admitted, “We really screwed it up. We pissed off a lot of people, and that’s not the way I do business.” He also said he wasn’t expecting the public backlash. But a Gallup poll found only 27% of Americans support data center construction in their area. Now an O’Leary-backed data center in Canada is also getting pushback from angry residents.
