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Protesters break into Microsoft data centre site in Amsterdam

By · Published by Everything Blog

In short

Several hundred demonstrators infiltrated the Sloterdijk construction site on Friday, scaling a crane and setting off flares before clashing with authorities. Dutch police detained between 150 and 200 participants for trespassing while clearing the grounds. Microsoft acknowledged the demonstration, affirming respect for peaceful protest while condemning illegal actions and safety hazards. The incident formed part of a coordinated two-day international initiative spanning 15 European nations.

Key points

  • Environmental and social activists argue that data center expansion advances too quickly…: Environmental and social activists argue that data center expansion advances too quickly without sufficient public consultation or oversight.
  • Heavy computing demands and water requirements for artificial intelligence workloads are…: Heavy computing demands and water requirements for artificial intelligence workloads are intensifying grassroots resistance throughout Europe.
  • Technology companies face increasing public scrutiny across multiple European countries o…: Technology companies face increasing public scrutiny across multiple European countries over the resource consumption of cloud infrastructure.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

Data centres face protests across Europe due to the massive amounts of computing power and water they use.

Protesters in the Netherlands have broken into a construction site for a new Microsoft data centre in Amsterdam, the latest action in a growing movement sweeping Europe.

Several hundred activists occupied the site in the Sloterdijk district on Friday, responding to a call for a two-day protest across Europe against data centres, which handle the large processing workloads associated with artificial intelligence (AI). Demonstrators clashed with police as some climbed a crane and set off flares.

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Nathan Timmer, of the protest group Geef Tegengas – which translates as Push Back – told local broadcaster AT5 that demonstrators were occupying the site in an effort to stop construction.

“We don’t want it to be…

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