64 Billion Reasons to Ask: Who Pays for the AI Boom?

Reflect w/ Ed Fassio — where AI tells the stories that matter. 64 billion dollars. That's how much in US data center projects has been blocked or delayed in 2026 — not by regulators or investors, but by neighborhoods. Town hall meetings. Zoning boards. Regular people with electricity bills and a zoning map. Julius and Hale break down the physical reality of AI infrastructure: gigawatt-scale power demand, millions of gallons of water per day for cooling, and the communities bearing the local cost of a global technology boom. The opposition is bipartisan, it's organized, and it's winning. We cover what Harvard's research says about the legitimacy of these concerns, why Wall Street's build-pace assumptions are colliding with local land use authority, and what the 64 billion dollar number actually means for the future of AI development at scale. Your Move: Enterprise AI leaders, policymakers, and everyday consumers all have a specific action here. — Reflect w/ Ed Fassio | reflectpodcast.com