--- title: "Retired Air Force Colonel Warns Americans That It’s Dangerous to Live Near Data Centers Because You Could Be Targeted or Killed" description: "A retired AIr Force colonel warned Americans not to live near data centers in a nwe report by a Texas-based prepper advocacy group." date: "2026-10-07" modified: "2026-10-07" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor.md" url: "https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/retired-air-force-colonel-dangerous-live-near-data-centers" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "Ethics" --- # Retired Air Force Colonel Warns Americans That It’s Dangerous to Live Near Data Centers Because You Could Be Targeted or Killed ![A photo illustration of a data center rack and a skull.]() *Shutterstock / Futurism* There are a growing list of reasons not to want to live near an AI data center. Some of them [emit constant screeching noises]() that are impossible to drown out. Others [rely on massive diesel generators]() that spew smog into the community and greenhouse emissions into the atmosphere. If you get particularly unlucky, your [electricity bill could also go up]() as a result of a new data center setting up shop in your neighborhood. And, if a [recent report]() by the colorfully-named Texas-based advocacy group Collapse Survival Institute is anything to go by, living near a data center could be a matter of life and death as well. The report, which was put together by retired Air Force colonel Drew Miller, quotes former Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon, who left his post at the AI company earlier this year. Coxon [drew widespread media attention]() for arguing that there was a greater than ten percent chance of AI ending humanity — incendiary comments that prompted widespread fears of a catastrophic singularity-like event. In the prepper-inflected report, Miller argued that the data centers themselves may become the ground zero if a malicious — or "misaligned" — AI were to ever go rogue and break out, warning that "people living near AI data centers may be targeted as proxies for human control and resistance." The report frets that the "rogue \[artificial general intelligence\] threat is very real" and that "AI is not a program we control." "This is not science fiction," it concluded. "It is the straightforward extrapolation of capabilities that AI already has or unregulated AI companies are racing to achieve — and that multiple senior AI researchers now acknowledge they cannot reliably control." Therefore, Miller is calling on Congress to place a "moratorium on the construction of new AI data centers," mandate "mandatory 'kill switch' infrastructure requirements for all frontier AI systems," and implement "full transparency requirements for frontier AI labs." If a "rogue AGI" is let loose on humanity, it's not just people who live near data centers that could be doomed, according to the Institute. Even people "living near major power plants or transmission lines that feed data centers face similar risk," since "rogue AGI will seek to protect and control its power supply." It's hard to contextualize how seriously to take the warning. Everything it's warning about is firmly rooted in the future — but the past few years of AI progress have set a course that's already alarming people at frontier labs like Coxon. The Collapse Survival Institute also offers plenty of other colorful "collapse triggers" on [its website](), from "military invasions" of the US and a "nanotechnology disaster," to invasions "from space." According to its model estimates, there's an up to 57 percent "annual chance of a collapse" — which, just to spitball, feels a bit high. Another hazard to those living near data centers, per the report: "prompt strikes" by world powers "to destroy AI systems that pose an immediate risk," per the report, which suggests a "military alliance led by US, China, Russia, UK, and other countries" would be a meaningful countermeasure. Miller appears to be a well-known figure in prepper circles, making appearances on YouTube channels like the "Fortitude Ranch Survival Community" to [discuss the chance of an "alien invasion]()." The prepper community advocates staying "far from AI valued assets, staying put on their property farming and ranching, posing no threat to rogue AI systems," while rural residents should arm themselves with "longer-range ten-gauge shotguns" so they can "destroy the drones and robots an AI system may deploy," as Miller notes in an [accompanying press release]() to his report. At the same time, in a moment when even some of the brightest minds are calling for a more careful approach in light of a potentially existential threat to humanity, the former colonel's warnings may not be entirely misplaced. Besides, if intentionally weaponized by humans, the threat of AI could be closer than we might think. Even in the absence of a systemic collapse of civilization brought on by a rogue AI, there are plenty of other reasons not to live near a data center, as Miller is happy to point out — an unfortunate reality that has mobilized a growing bipartisan movement across the United States. **More on AI risks:** [*The Majority of Americans Are Now Terrified of AI*]() ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()