[carlob]

You are not taking into account the fact that data centers tend to be pretty concentrated geographically.

If I live in an area that is trying to attract data centers by giving them sweetheart deals, my electricity bill is going to go up by more than my share in inference usage since those data centers will be used by people all over the globe.

[hdgvhicv]

Many, people, probably most, are not using any inference in their lives - certainly not willingly or knowingly.

[silversmith]

Worldwide, maybe. But in the "western world"? Couple weeks ago my mother asked me to compare the main LLM providers. And then for tips how to best use it. She is over 80.

[hdgvhicv]

And there was a letter in the local paper this week about someone complaining they councils park in town because they didn’t have a debit card and they certainly don’t have any “app phones”, a far more common approach amongst older people

[carlob]

Of course, for example me, the person you are replying to. I am an LLM vegan.

[megaman821]

How is this different than any other form of industry?

If I live in an area that is trying to attract [steel mills] by giving them sweetheart deals, my electricity bill is going to go up by more than my share in [steel] usage since [that steel] will be used by people all over the globe.

[lesuorac]

I think if you found the average person on the street and asked them if their electric bill would go up when a steel mill opens nearby they'd only say yes because why else are you asking them.

[croon]

Most other industries create (more) local jobs which would offset the localized cost.

[gruez]

This sounds like a generic NIMBY argument to me? eg. "why should we build a datacenter in my backyard, when it'll raise MY electricity prices?" Of course, if everyone has this attitude, no datecenters, power plants, homeless shelters will ever be built

[zeroCalories]

I am very YIMBY, but it's totally reasonable that you don't want industrial work done in your backyard. This is exactly what zoning and city planning were designed for.

[merman]

It seems odd to me to try to redefine Y/NIMBY depending on the individual project. I wouldn’t want a sewage plant or a datacenter in my neighborhood, absolutely no one would. Why would one be NIMBY and one not?

[mcosta]

Then talk to your local politician