@conscious.app: Big Tech is now scouting Patagonia, one of the most beautiful places on Earth, to build mega data centers. Patagonia is the southern tip of South America, shared by Argentina and Chile, and its cold air keeps data center machines cool for free. In the U.S., critics say data centers strain power grids and raise electricity bills. Argentina has no backlash yet, and its president, Javier Milei, met the CEOs of Apple, OpenAI, Google and Meta in 2024 to pitch them on investing. OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, signed a non-binding deal in October 2025 with Argentine company Sur Energy for a data center worth up to $25 billion. As of August, the final contract still wasn't signed. Pampa Energía, one of Argentina's biggest power companies, wants a data center next to its gas plant in Neuquén province. It would run on up to 500 megawatts from Vaca Muerta, one of the world's largest shale gas deposits, which is drilled by fracking. Indigenous Mapuche families live in that area and have a history of clashing with energy companies. Nobody reported Pampa's plan until Reuters revealed it this September. Big Tech companies like Google, Microsoft, Amazon and Meta are pouring huge amounts of money into AI infrastructure like data centers. If you'd rather not fund companies like these, the Conscious Spend app shows you how ethical a company is and gives you better alternatives. That's how I found Thaura AI and Mistral, two AI chatbots I use instead of ChatGPT. The app also has alternatives in other industries, like beauty and clothing.

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Wednesday 30 September 2026 04:20:38 GMT