Public criticism of AI, data centers as Anthropic, OpenAI eyes IPO

Artificial intelligence is losing the popularity race in the United States, and that’s bad news for some big tech companies.

This trend affects highly valued companies like OpenAI and Anthropic, both of which are on the path to going public. It can also be a threat Amazon, google, microsoft and metaso-called hyperscalers, plan to spend hundreds of billions of dollars to compete to acquire data centers to power AI.

Recent manifestations of negative emotions have been extreme.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was targeted last week at his San Francisco home, where prosecutors said a man threw a lit Molotov cocktail at his driveway gate. The San Francisco District Attorney said the crime was motivated by hatred of AI technology.

The suspect, 20-year-old Daniel Morenogama from Texas, has been charged with attempted murder and other crimes. He is also accused of threatening to burn down OpenAI’s headquarters.

Altman responded to the attack over the weekend, acknowledging there was “huge anxiety about AI” and calling for a de-escalation of rhetoric and tactics.

“I share the anti-technology sentiment, and it is clear that technology is not always good for everyone,” Altman wrote. “But overall, I believe that advances in technology will make the future incredibly better for your family and my family.”

Mr. Altman has recently rolled out several policy relief measures to pre-empt broader economic instability, from a public wealth fund to changes to the payroll tax that favor a four-day work week and tax automation.

But Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei was among those who raised the risk of large-scale disruption from AI.

The conversation is now shifting from the niche technology industry to the general public.

AI is already expected to be a central issue in the midterm election campaign, with polling data suggesting Americans are becoming more pessimistic about the technology.

An NBC News poll in March found that 57% of registered voters believe the risks of AI outweigh the benefits, and a Quinnipiac University poll reported that 55% expect AI to do more harm than good in their daily lives.

These results are echoed in a Pew poll that found a majority of Americans are more concerned than excited about the increasing use of AI.

Data centers and servers are the real brains behind AI, and tech giants have spent about $700 billion building them across the United States this year. The more data centers and “computing” available, the smarter these AI models will become.

But data center energy needs have already been the focus of state and local campaigns, sparking widespread backlash.

A report from Data Center Watch found that in 2025, at least $156 billion in data center projects were blocked or delayed due to local opposition and litigation.

Maine passed its first statewide data center ban on Wednesday, and it now heads to the governor’s desk for signature. Voters in the St. Louis suburb of Leicester, Missouri, voted several City Council members over their support for a proposed data center.

Finally, the risks could spill over into an impending public offering.

OpenAI’s valuation may depend in particular on its data center expansion, which the company says is a strategic advantage. Political sentiment could also weigh on potential shareholders.

The company is among the companies planning to reserve a portion of its IPO for retail investors, said CFO Sarah Friar.

“Everyone wants to own a piece of a rocket company,” Friar said, referring to SpaceX and its plans to keep nearly 30% of its allocation for retail. “We hope everyone wants to own a piece of ChatGPT, which is helpful if you’re a consumer brand.”