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Could the AI bubble burst after Democrats' midterms sweep? - The Latest

Credited to The Guardian · theguardian.com5h ago

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Global tech stocks have plunged after the Democrats’ victory in the US midterm elections, with fears of a slowdown in AI development. Major tech corporations including Apple, Tesla and Nvidia shed about $1tn in a single trading session. Is this stock market jitters, or a sign the AI bubble might be about to burst? Lucy Hough speaks to senior economics correspondent Richard Partington

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Capital · United States

Amazon buys Loudoun property for $100M, plans data center

Credited to Virginia Business · virginiabusiness.com · 1h ago

Amazon has spent nearly $100 million to acquire 23 acres near Dulles International Airport, where it plans to build a 100-foot-tall data center. The proposal comes as Loudoun County officials consider a temporary pause on data center approvals.

According to county property records, Amazon purchased the property on Oct. 13 for $99.79 million from Chantilly-based limited liability company Intrepid Associates. The property contains an 18,830-square-foot storage warehouse. Amazon filed pre-application documents outlining its plans for a data center in late July.

Located at 44146 Wade Drive, the site previously hosted a concrete manufacturing facility and related facilities that are now shuttered, according to the pre-application documents. The land is zoned Mineral Resource-Heavy Industry (MR-HI). Amazon is seeking two special exceptions: one to permit a data center on the property and another to increase the maximum permitted building height from 45 feet to 100 feet.

Amazon has not yet submitted a formal special exception application, according to Courey Stewart, a representative of Loudoun County’s Department of Planning and Zoning.

Stewart said in an email that the county’s typical review process takes nine to 12 months from the acceptance of a formal application to a final decision by the Board of Supervisors. A Planning Commission public hearing is also required.

Amazon had not provided responses to questions about the Wade Drive project’s scope, investment and development timeline as of Friday afternoon. A company spokesperson said they would try to provide comment later.

County planning staff noted during an Aug. 10 pre-application meeting that the proposed 100-foot building height exceeds the county’s General Plan guidance for the area, which recommends buildings of up to four stories, or approximately 60 to 80 feet. Staff requested additional justification for the height and information about how the building would fit with surrounding development.

Stewart said county officials will decide later whether the height presents a problem, once a formal application is submitted. The matter likely will depend on Amazon’s justification and the project’s compatibility with the surrounding area.

The Wade Drive proposal also follows Amazon’s recent decision to abandon plans for four data centers at George Washington University’s Ashburn campus, which the company acquired earlier this year for approximately $427 million. Under an agreement announced in October, Amazon instead plans to pursue mixed-use development, primarily housing, on the 122-acre property and dedicate approximately 25 acres for a future community arts center and indoor sports facility. County supervisors and others, including the county’s economic development executive director, Buddy Rizer, publicly opposed the plan for data centers on GW’s campus.

However, the Wade Drive property is close to data center-zoned land, bordering Washington Dulles International Airport to the north and an existing data center to the west. Land to the east is planned and zoned for data center development, while properties to the south include a warehouse, several more data centers and land owned by Chantilly Crushed Stone, according to the pre-application documents.

Meanwhile, Loudoun County supervisors are considering a pause in considering certain data center and electric substation applications for up to 12 months, a matter expected to be discussed at the board’s Nov. 17 meeting. The county attorney previously said that a countywide moratorium on all data center approvals was not legal after it was suggested.

County officials say the proposed delay in considering some applications would allow time to review and potentially revise data center policies and zoning regulations, a process expected to conclude in summer 2027.

Asked how the proposed pause might affect Amazon’s Wade Drive project, Stewart said that would depend on the language of any measure ultimately adopted.