Connect | New York // DCD Talks backlash or buy-in? Why communities want nuclear-powered AI | Oklo

Operators are afraid their data centers won’t get built. Why? Community backlash. Local residents and businesses worry that data centers will consume too much electricity and drive up utility prices, but create fewer jobs and economic benefits than other industries. There’s a solution: pair data centers with advanced nuclear power. Advanced nuclear projects bring what every community wants: good jobs, new tax revenue, and new reliable generation that eliminates competition for power. Oklo’s landmark deal with Meta in Pike County, Ohio is a perfect example. The multi-year project will create thousands of long-term jobs, pump tens of millions of dollars into the local economy, and deliver safe, clean, 24/7 power. The economic benefits of advanced nuclear power are changing people’s minds: from backlash to buy-in, from “Not in my backyard” to “Build it here!”

What you’ll learn:

• How advanced nuclear reshapes the local value proposition for data centers
• Why States and local communities are competing to attract advanced nuclear projects
• What the Oklo-Meta project in Ohio teaches us about winning local support for data centers