US Government Seeks to Halt Lawsuit Against Elon Musk's AI Company XAI

Washington DC. Media reports indicate that the US President Donald Trump administration is seeking to prevent environmental lawsuits against billionaire businessman Elon Musk's artificial intelligence company XAI. The Trump administration claims that attempts to halt the related electricity project could affect national security.

In a court filing this week, the US Department of Justice requested the dismissal of a lawsuit alleging that dozens of natural gas turbines, built to supply electricity to the $20 billion Colossus-2 data center planned in Memphis, Tennessee, were being operated illegally.

This lawsuit was filed in April by the American civil rights organization for Black citizens, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). The lawsuit, filed under the Clean Air Act of 1963, alleges that XAI constructed and operated the turbines without the necessary permits.

According to the NAACP, the turbines located in Southaven, Mississippi, have exposed hundreds of thousands of residents to harmful pollution. It is claimed that pollution could increase the risk of asthma, respiratory diseases, heart problems, and certain types of cancer.

The lawsuit notes that the proportion of the Black community among the residents of the affected area is much higher than the national average. In a filing with the US District Court on Monday, the Department of Justice argued that the NAACP's action poses a threat to national, economic, and energy security by halting the energy supply necessary for artificial intelligence innovation.

The filing claims that under the US Constitution, only the executive branch, i.e., the government, has the right to seek civil penalties, and the government alone has the authority to decide under what circumstances action is necessary or not.

Adam Gustafson, chief prosecutor for the Department of Justice's Environment and Natural Resources Division, stated that the government will not stand idly by when private organizations attempt to undermine national security by using environmental laws.

XAI is a subsidiary of Musk's space exploration company SpaceX. The company has not yet responded to this matter.