Amazon Web Services CEO Matt Garman announced that his company has ceased using nondisclosure agreements (NDAs) in its collaborations with government entities, a move aimed at securing approval for new data center projects.
This statement appears in a broader blog post where Garman aims to counteract widespread skepticism regarding data centers and argue that these facilities provide tangible value to communities.
NDAs have become a focal point of the rising opposition against data centers. For instance, environmental activist Erin Brockovich highlighted that transparency is the primary concern, noting a recurring pattern where projects are announced after permits are secured, developers ignore calls, and local officials sign NDAs before neighbors are informed.
In response to this resistance, New York has implemented a one-year moratorium on permits for large data centers, and Garman indicated that over 100 such moratoriums are currently under consideration across the United States.
Garman warned that if these measures are enacted, the U.S. risks falling behind in the technological race, warning of consequences that could last for generations.
Addressing public concerns, Garman sought to dismantle four prevailing myths: that data centers consume excessive water, drive up electricity costs, generate significant pollution, and offer no community benefits.
Citing an internal Amazon report, Garman argued that direct data center water usage accounts for only 0.5% of total industrial water use in the U.S., which is significantly less than golf courses and almond farming.
While Nvidia recently claimed to have eliminated "pretty much all water usage" within data centers, experts suggest these statements overlook the broader water footprint involved in electricity generation and chip manufacturing.
Regarding electricity rates, Garman noted that increases have occurred in specific states with high data center concentrations, attributing these hikes to an aging grid that lacks investment. However, an independent watchdog recently attributed a 76% year-over-year price surge on a major U.S. grid to data centers.
On the pollution front, referencing a lawsuit filed by the NAACP against SpaceX, Garman countered that critics often focus on the maximum allowable emissions. He pointed out that a planned Amazon data center in Texas is permitted to release 33 million tons of CO2 annually, an amount exceeding other U.S. power plants.
Garman emphasized that data center generators are rarely operational, running only 10 hours a year for maintenance testing, and are idle 99.9% of the time.
To address community benefits, Garman stated that Amazon has stopped using NDAs with government agencies and highlighted that the company has contributed over $1 billion to communities hosting data centers over the past three years.
Despite these efforts, restoring public trust remains a challenge. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei recently characterized the AI backlash as a "crisis of trust," noting that people assume tech companies are working against their interests. Similarly, writer Jasmine Sun observed that opponents often dismiss technical arguments, responding with skepticism rather than belief.
The Editorial Staff at AIChief is a team of professional content writers with extensive experience in AI and marketing. Founded in 2025, AIChief has quickly grown into the largest free AI resource hub in the industry.