John Kostyack
@kostyack.bsky.social
Consulting on climate change & the energy transition for NGOs & foundations at Kostyack Strategies. Senior Contributor at Forbes.com & Senior Fellow at ceea.us. All opinions expressed here are solely my own.
Pinned
Not long ago we climate policy folks focused on leveraging the power of the US gov't, as the world's largest customer, to drive decarbonization. How to respond now to Amazon's announcement that it's adding 1.3GW of data center capacity in 2026 so it can sell AI & computing services to the US gov't?
November 25, 2025 at 1:30 PM
Not long ago we climate policy folks focused on leveraging the power of the US gov't, as the world's largest customer, to drive decarbonization. How to respond now to Amazon's announcement that it's adding 1.3GW of data center capacity in 2026 so it can sell AI & computing services to the US gov't?
BNEF: global CO2 emissions "are expected to be 3.5 gigatons greater over the next ten years because of the additional fossil-fuel power generation required by data centers. That’s the equivalent of 10% of today’s total global emissions." www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
Why So Much Is Riding on the Data Center Boom
In pursuit of revolutionary advances in AI, tech companies are plowing billions of dollars into massive new facilities. The projects are straining power grids, environmental resources and, potentially...
www.bloomberg.com
November 24, 2025 at 7:20 PM
BNEF: global CO2 emissions "are expected to be 3.5 gigatons greater over the next ten years because of the additional fossil-fuel power generation required by data centers. That’s the equivalent of 10% of today’s total global emissions." www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
I could see why Google & other LLM generators might choose not to put their thumbs on the scale and, a la Elon, distort outcomes for ideological reasons. But I question whether the "internet consensus" delivered by their LLMs will deliver the truthful answers, supported by citations, that we need.
LLMs are fast becoming a major source of information.
In a new piece over at The Climate Brink, I argue that LLMs are fundamentally consensus machines, and could help defragment our information ecosystem – at least if their creators do not put thumbs on the digital scale.
In a new piece over at The Climate Brink, I argue that LLMs are fundamentally consensus machines, and could help defragment our information ecosystem – at least if their creators do not put thumbs on the digital scale.
Consensus machines
Will the AI future inadvertently recenter expertise?
www.theclimatebrink.com
November 24, 2025 at 6:42 PM
I could see why Google & other LLM generators might choose not to put their thumbs on the scale and, a la Elon, distort outcomes for ideological reasons. But I question whether the "internet consensus" delivered by their LLMs will deliver the truthful answers, supported by citations, that we need.
Meta's effort to preserve its credit rating by keeping its $27B data center & associated debt off its books "strains credibility," built on assumptions that the match the reality of its ability to control the project. [gift link]
AI Meets Aggressive Accounting at Meta’s Gigantic New Data Center
Favorable treatment off the balance sheet hinges on some convenient assumptions.
www.wsj.com
November 24, 2025 at 2:49 PM
Meta's effort to preserve its credit rating by keeping its $27B data center & associated debt off its books "strains credibility," built on assumptions that the match the reality of its ability to control the project. [gift link]
AI and data centers are a huge fault line in Trump’s coalition. It turns out that deregulation and tax cuts to line the pockets of tech billionaires, a key focus of Trump II, isn't winning over the MAGA base. www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...
The surprising issue driving a wedge between Trump and his MAGA base
President Donald Trump’s attempt to block states from regulating AI sparked pushback from Republicans concerned the tech will displace workers and harm kids.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 23, 2025 at 4:08 PM
AI and data centers are a huge fault line in Trump’s coalition. It turns out that deregulation and tax cuts to line the pockets of tech billionaires, a key focus of Trump II, isn't winning over the MAGA base. www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...
@carlbfrey.bsky.social: the AI bubble differs in key respects from the 90s tech bubble, with bigger macroeconomic risks. First, unlike long-lived fiber-optic cable and backbone networks built in the 90s, today's AI chips & memory quickly degrade or become obsolete, requiring constant reinvestment.
The AI Bubble’s Shaky Math
Carl Benedikt Frey thinks the productivity gains are more muted, and the macro risks more pronounced, than in the dot-com bubble.
www.project-syndicate.org
November 23, 2025 at 3:20 PM
@carlbfrey.bsky.social: the AI bubble differs in key respects from the 90s tech bubble, with bigger macroeconomic risks. First, unlike long-lived fiber-optic cable and backbone networks built in the 90s, today's AI chips & memory quickly degrade or become obsolete, requiring constant reinvestment.
Gas pipeline proposals are moving fast & furious in the southeast US. Dan River Basin Assn's Haworth: these companies are putting communities at risk "producing for a market that may not exist."
Gas Pipeline Proposals in Virginia Multiply Through the South—and Worry Community Activists - Inside Climate News
MVP’s Southgate Extension and Williams Companies’ Southeast Supply Enhancement Project are proposed in close proximity within a single North Carolina county.
insideclimatenews.org
November 22, 2025 at 2:48 PM
Gas pipeline proposals are moving fast & furious in the southeast US. Dan River Basin Assn's Haworth: these companies are putting communities at risk "producing for a market that may not exist."
Reposted by John Kostyack
The partisan divide has grown, too. The wealthiest 100 tended to give more to Republicans than to Democrats before last year. But giving to the GOP spiked in 2024, with *84%* of donations going to back Republicans or conservative PACs.
November 21, 2025 at 2:56 PM
The partisan divide has grown, too. The wealthiest 100 tended to give more to Republicans than to Democrats before last year. But giving to the GOP spiked in 2024, with *84%* of donations going to back Republicans or conservative PACs.
Large consumers of energy & commodities have long sought to hedge risk w trading. But it's risky: when Ford traded in palladium, it suffered a $1B loss after a market crash. Energy trading in particular "can be notoriously volatile and even ripe for manipulation." Now here comes Big Tech.
Meta is moving into electricity trading, betting it can speed up construction of new US power plants to fuel its AI ambitions.
Our interview with Meta’s energy chief shows how Big Tech is reshaping America’s energy markets: www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Our interview with Meta’s energy chief shows how Big Tech is reshaping America’s energy markets: www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Meta Looks to Power Trading to Support Its AI Energy Needs
Meta Platforms Inc. is venturing into the complex world of electricity trading, betting it can accelerate the construction of new US power plants that are vital to its artificial intelligence ambition...
www.bloomberg.com
November 21, 2025 at 5:13 PM
Large consumers of energy & commodities have long sought to hedge risk w trading. But it's risky: when Ford traded in palladium, it suffered a $1B loss after a market crash. Energy trading in particular "can be notoriously volatile and even ripe for manipulation." Now here comes Big Tech.
At the COP, more than 80 countries stood behind a proposal for national plans on how to quit oil, gas and coal. In the 2026 and 2028 federal elections, every US politician should be asked if they support crafting such a plan for our country.
More than 80 countries back push for ‘road map’ to quit fossil fuels at COP30
Intervention from ministers once again puts the topic at the heart of climate change discussions
www.ft.com
November 21, 2025 at 4:54 PM
At the COP, more than 80 countries stood behind a proposal for national plans on how to quit oil, gas and coal. In the 2026 and 2028 federal elections, every US politician should be asked if they support crafting such a plan for our country.
Reposted by John Kostyack
I wrote this week's Screenland column about the houses collapsing in the Outer Banks, an unusually visible example of a problem--the potentially rapid collapse of assets in a quickly changing world--that's much bigger www.nytimes.com/2025/11/19/m...
Houses Collapsing Into the Sea? It’s Not as Baffling as It Looks.
www.nytimes.com
November 21, 2025 at 3:34 PM
I wrote this week's Screenland column about the houses collapsing in the Outer Banks, an unusually visible example of a problem--the potentially rapid collapse of assets in a quickly changing world--that's much bigger www.nytimes.com/2025/11/19/m...
Reposted by John Kostyack
The forced displacement of the 10 million residents of a major world capital due to climate change is... not even making the news here in our era of ascendant fascism and late capitalism.
'Iran’s capital must be moved because the country “no longer has a choice,” President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Thursday in remarks carried by state media, warning that severe ecological strain has made Tehran impossible to sustain'
#Iran 🇮🇷
#Iran 🇮🇷
Iran president says capital move now a necessity as water crisis deepens
Iran’s capital must be moved because the country “no longer has a choice,” President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Thursday in remarks carried by state media, warning that severe ecological strain has mad...
www.iranintl.com
November 21, 2025 at 4:00 PM
The forced displacement of the 10 million residents of a major world capital due to climate change is... not even making the news here in our era of ascendant fascism and late capitalism.
This investor says AI will lead to a better world even w a burst AI bubble, ignoring the risks of increasing GHG emissions & depleted water supplies from fossil-fueled data centers producing unreliable LLMs. We need to counter this blindness to systemic risks if we want a sustainable economy.
Opinion | A.I. Is a Bubble. Maybe That’s OK.
www.nytimes.com
November 21, 2025 at 4:10 PM
This investor says AI will lead to a better world even w a burst AI bubble, ignoring the risks of increasing GHG emissions & depleted water supplies from fossil-fueled data centers producing unreliable LLMs. We need to counter this blindness to systemic risks if we want a sustainable economy.
Local control over land use is a time-honored, bipartisan tradition. But former senator Sinema, Exxon, Meta, Microsoft & their newly-formed AI Infrastructure Coalition do not care. Let's see how their agenda of federal override of zoning power goes over in the Republican-led communities of Arizona.
An ex-senator walks into a zoning meeting
www.politico.com
November 21, 2025 at 2:35 PM
Local control over land use is a time-honored, bipartisan tradition. But former senator Sinema, Exxon, Meta, Microsoft & their newly-formed AI Infrastructure Coalition do not care. Let's see how their agenda of federal override of zoning power goes over in the Republican-led communities of Arizona.
"U.S. politicians are more dependent on the largesse of the billionaire class than ever before, giving one-four-hundredth of 1 percent [0.000025] of Americans extraordinary influence over which politicians and policies succeed." [gift link] wapo.st/48nkqMN
How billionaires took over American politics
The current concentration of wealth is unlike anything in history. So is billionaires’ involvement in politics.
wapo.st
November 21, 2025 at 2:23 PM
"U.S. politicians are more dependent on the largesse of the billionaire class than ever before, giving one-four-hundredth of 1 percent [0.000025] of Americans extraordinary influence over which politicians and policies succeed." [gift link] wapo.st/48nkqMN
"Climate shock." New study shows that rising property insurance premiums caused by growing weather extremes are cascading into the real estate market. Homes in the ZIP codes most exposed to hurricanes and wildfires would sell for an average of $43,900 less than they would otherwise.
November 20, 2025 at 11:12 PM
"Climate shock." New study shows that rising property insurance premiums caused by growing weather extremes are cascading into the real estate market. Homes in the ZIP codes most exposed to hurricanes and wildfires would sell for an average of $43,900 less than they would otherwise.
Reposted by John Kostyack
NEW: As Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick drives billions of dollars in foreign payments to help build AI data centers in the US, his sons help run a company earning tens of millions in fees helping finance AI data centers. A NYT investigation. (Free link)
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/20/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/20/u...
Family Affair: Commerce Secretary’s Sons Cash In on A.I. Frenzy
www.nytimes.com
November 20, 2025 at 12:02 PM
NEW: As Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick drives billions of dollars in foreign payments to help build AI data centers in the US, his sons help run a company earning tens of millions in fees helping finance AI data centers. A NYT investigation. (Free link)
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/20/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/20/u...
So happy to see these newly-released principles on data center siting from NAACP and Env & Climate Justice, developed following a national convening in Memphis. naacp.org/articles/naa...
November 20, 2025 at 3:33 PM
So happy to see these newly-released principles on data center siting from NAACP and Env & Climate Justice, developed following a national convening in Memphis. naacp.org/articles/naa...
Govs. DeSantis and Cox of are pushing back against Trump's efforts to override states' ability to protect their residents from AI's harms. Some Republicans are smart enough to know that the cozy alliance w Big Tech is not selling with their base. www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...
White House drafts order directing Justice Department to sue states that pass AI regulations
The draft order comes after Republicans in Congress failed to pass a federal ban on state AI regulation, as more lawmakers raise concerns about the technology.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 20, 2025 at 3:21 PM
Govs. DeSantis and Cox of are pushing back against Trump's efforts to override states' ability to protect their residents from AI's harms. Some Republicans are smart enough to know that the cozy alliance w Big Tech is not selling with their base. www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...
Musk's xAI data center was sited in a Memphis community w/o consulting w its Black residents. As the use of this data center becomes more clear, we can only imagine how residents' anger will increase. Will it feel any different than if a monument to Confederate insurrectionists had been installed?
Musk's Grokipedia is a cesspool of white supremacist and Neo Nazi garbage. Cornell researchers: xAI's Grokipedia cites neo-Nazi website Stormfront 42 times, Infowars 34 times, and white nationalist website VDare 107 times
Elon Musk’s Grokipedia cites Stormfront — a neo-Nazi forum — dozens of times, study finds
An analysis by researchers at Cornell University is the first comprehensive look at Grokipedia since Musk launched his project last month.
www.nbcnews.com
November 20, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Musk's xAI data center was sited in a Memphis community w/o consulting w its Black residents. As the use of this data center becomes more clear, we can only imagine how residents' anger will increase. Will it feel any different than if a monument to Confederate insurrectionists had been installed?
Wm and Mary's Atwater: the more his students learn about AI, the less comfortable they are. “AI has gone from being a useful, timesaving tool for papers & research to a threat to entry level jobs, higher utility bills, environmental concern about water & farmland.” [gift link]
The Most Joyless Tech Revolution Ever: AI Is Making Us Rich and Unhappy
Discomfort around artificial intelligence helps explain the disconnect between a solid economy and an anxious public.
www.wsj.com
November 20, 2025 at 3:05 PM
Wm and Mary's Atwater: the more his students learn about AI, the less comfortable they are. “AI has gone from being a useful, timesaving tool for papers & research to a threat to entry level jobs, higher utility bills, environmental concern about water & farmland.” [gift link]
Reposted by John Kostyack
“Elon Musk's xAl is constructing one of the world's largest Al supercenters in one of the city’s poorest neighborhoods. This mirrors a long history of environmental racism where polluting industries and hazardous developments are placed in communities with the least
political and financial power.” 🧵
political and financial power.” 🧵
August 24, 2025 at 7:06 PM
“Elon Musk's xAl is constructing one of the world's largest Al supercenters in one of the city’s poorest neighborhoods. This mirrors a long history of environmental racism where polluting industries and hazardous developments are placed in communities with the least
political and financial power.” 🧵
political and financial power.” 🧵
“Transmission organizations should be public bodies leading the transition to an affordable, reliable, and sustainable power system, not private clubs obstructing it “ newrepublic.com/article/2031...
How to Lower Energy Costs: Break Up the Electrical-Grid Cabal
Seven obscure regional transmission organizations control huge parts of the country’s electrical grid.
newrepublic.com
November 20, 2025 at 2:20 AM
“Transmission organizations should be public bodies leading the transition to an affordable, reliable, and sustainable power system, not private clubs obstructing it “ newrepublic.com/article/2031...
Reposted by John Kostyack
Another challenge is balancing since data centers can switch computational work btw different regions / balancing authorities for reasons often unknown to operators like price sensitivity, emission... Difficulty to forecast = increased reserves = increased costs for all market participants.
November 19, 2025 at 4:21 PM
Another challenge is balancing since data centers can switch computational work btw different regions / balancing authorities for reasons often unknown to operators like price sensitivity, emission... Difficulty to forecast = increased reserves = increased costs for all market participants.
Reposted by John Kostyack
Reminder that a research group for electric utilities forecasted that training AI models will consume 100% of peak grid capacity by 2035. bsky.app/profile/bslo...
Grid Strategies has analyzed utilities' summer peak load forecasts: an astounding 166 GW, with data centers representing 90 GW. But it cautions that the utility industry has a long history of exaggerated forecasts to justify massive investments in power plants & grid infrastructure.
November 19, 2025 at 3:29 PM
Reminder that a research group for electric utilities forecasted that training AI models will consume 100% of peak grid capacity by 2035. bsky.app/profile/bslo...