Amazon Web Services CEO Matt Garman announced that the company has ceased using nondisclosure agreements (NDAs) in its dealings with government agencies, a move aimed at addressing widespread skepticism surrounding the expansion of data centers. The statement was featured in a blog post where Garman argued that these facilities benefit local communities and called for a rejection of the “four big myths” surrounding their environmental and economic impact.
The shift away from NDAs responds to intense public scrutiny. Environmental activist Erin Brockovich recently highlighted transparency as the primary complaint regarding data center projects, noting a recurring pattern where permits are secured and developers remain unresponsive before local officials even inform their constituents. This sentiment has fueled political action, including a one-year moratorium on large data center permits in New York and over 100 similar measures under consideration across the United States.
Garman warned that such restrictions could harm the U.S. competitive position, stating, “If these measures are enacted, the U.S. could be writing its own losing ticket to this race, and the consequences would last generations.” He urged the country to avoid what he described as an unaffordable strategic disadvantage.
Addressing specific criticisms, Garman cited an internal Amazon report to counter claims about excessive water consumption, arguing that direct data center usage accounts for only 0.5% of industrial water use in the U.S.—a figure he claimed was significantly lower than that of golf courses and almond farming. However, critics note that such reports often overlook water used in electricity generation and chip manufacturing. Additionally, while Amazon recently followed Nvidia in claiming it will eliminate most water usage within its facilities, scientists emphasize the need for independent study due to a lack of federal reporting requirements.
On the topic of electricity, Garman attributed rising energy rates in some states to aging grid infrastructure rather than data center demand. This contradicts an independent watchdog report that identified data centers as the primary driver behind a 76% year-over-year price spike on America’s largest electrical grid.
Garman also tackled concerns about pollution, pointing out that generators permitted for massive carbon output—such as a planned Texas facility allowed to emit 33 million tons annually—remain idle 99.9% of the time, running only for maintenance tests. Regarding community contributions, Garman noted that Amazon has donated more than $1 billion to U.S. communities with a significant data center presence over the past three years.
Despite these assurances, the industry faces a deep-seated crisis of trust. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei recently described the backlash against AI as fundamentally rooted in public suspicion that governments and tech firms are concealing harmful agendas. Writer Jasmine Sun observed that when opponents of data centers are presented with corporate arguments, the common response remains, “I don’t believe them.”
If we halt data centers, the US falls behind globally. We need balanced growth, not blanket bans.
Dropping NDAs is a start, but I still don’t trust their water usage stats. Where’s the independent oversight?