Microsoft-backed AI data center has been accused of violating federal law

It's allegedly been running dozens of gigantic generators without a permit.

The largest planned AI data center in New Jersey has been accused of violating federal law after an investigation found the site running dozens of gas-powered generators without a permit, according to Floodlight and The Guardian . Thermal drone footage showed the partly-finished DataOne facility was operating at least 45 of the site's 62 generators simultaneously. The facility allegedly doesn't have permits for any of them.

We flew a thermal drone over one of the largest data centers planned on the East Coast.

What we found: 60+ unpermitted generators, tractor-trailer-sized, burning a mile from two schools. https://t.co/iuGazzdnSM pic.twitter.com/RjWyfx86bk

DataOne is located around 40 miles outside of Philadelphia in Vineland, New Jersey. It provides AI computing power to Microsoft as part of a $17 billion deal with Dutch AI infrastructure giant Nebius. This data center has been controversial since breaking ground in 2025. There have been persistent noise complaints, contentious zoning debates and major blowback from residents. It's located just a mile from two schools.

In the age of AI, it's worth discussing the size of all of this stuff. The DataOne site will eventually become a 2.6 million-square-foot behemoth. A standard data center, of the type that powers cloud services, typically comes in at around 100,000 square feet. That's an exponential size difference.

The generators are also absolutely massive. Each one is the size of a tractor-trailer or semi-truck. These gigantic machines are gas-powered and emit boatloads of air pollution that have been linked to health conditions like asthma and heart attacks . They are also really, really loud. The noise complaints have led to a lawsuit by residents , which is ongoing.

So any site using this type of generator requires "a final permit before bringing" them online "and certainly before firing them up," according to former EPA chief Bruce Buckheit. The thermal drone footage suggests that many are operational , all without permits. Buckheit believes that DataOne's actions "violate federal law" and that the company should immediately cease operations and pay a fine for "their illegal emissions."