Elon Musk's SpaceXSI offers to buy hundreds of homes near its AI data centers, as long as owners don't sue

Elon Musk's SpaceXSI is attempting to purchase homes in the Colonial Hills neighborhood of Southaven, Mississippi, in an effort to prevent residents from joining a noise pollution class-action lawsuit. The tech company's agents have been visiting homes to offer the purchase deals. As of now, 18 homeowners have agreed to sell their homes, with SpaceXSI aiming to acquire 418 properties in total.

The properties will reportedly be used to house SpaceXSI staff. The EPA has since closed a loophole, requiring off-grid turbines at SpaceXSI's Colossus 1 and 2 sites to meet the same Clean Air Act regulations as stationary power plants. Despite this, residents continue to complain about the noise pollution caused by the gas turbines, which one resident describes as sounding like an airplane engine that never stops.

The buyout offers are being made at market value, with the average house price in the area being $180,000. SpaceXSI denies the noise pollution claims, stating that it has adjusted power output and installed sound-dampening walls. The mayor of Southaven claims the buyouts will not turn the neighborhood into a company town and that the initiative serves multiple purposes, including providing homes for employees and showing corporate goodwill.