On June 9, Mississippi residents filed a federal class action accusing xAI, SpaceX and xAI subsidiary MZX Tech of creating an ongoing noise disturbance tied to a power plant that supplies nearby data centers.
The complaint, lodged in federal court in Oxford, Mississippi, says the gas-fired turbines at the Southaven facility have produced “omnipresent and inescapable” noise and vibrations that have degraded the physical and emotional well-being of people living near the plant and eroded local property values. Three residents are named as plaintiffs and are bringing the claim on behalf of a class the complaint estimates includes more than 10,000 members.
The suit alleges the companies negligently failed to control the disturbance and that the noise amounts to a public nuisance because of its volume and persistency. Plaintiffs are pursuing damages tied to emotional distress, reduced home valuations and other harms, and are also seeking disgorgement of an unspecified amount in profits.
“Our homes are supposed to be a sanctuary for us against the world, but when they are invaded by noise 24 hours a day, it takes that fundamental peace of a good and decent life away from us,” said plaintiffs lawyer Robert Wiygul in a statement included with the filing.
The filing notes that xAI invested more than $20 billion to construct the Southaven plant with the backing of Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves. According to the complaint, the gas-fired turbines at Southaven provide power to data centers in and around the Southaven area.
xAI and SpaceX did not immediately respond to requests for comment, the filing said. Elon Musk is not named as a defendant in the complaint.
The complaint arrives amid related legal scrutiny of xAIs data center operations. In April, the NAACP filed a separate lawsuit against xAI challenging compliance with U.S. environmental rules at the plant and associated centers; that case remains pending. The U.S. Department of Justice recently indicated in a court filing that it may intervene in the NAACP litigation, noting that the dispute raises legal and policy issues concerning the governments role in AI infrastructure.
The Mississippi class action frames the impact of the facility in human terms - alleging near-constant noise and vibration - and seeks monetary relief for a range of harms without specifying the amount of disgorgement requested. The suit names an xAI subsidiary, MZX Tech, as a defendant and specifically excludes Elon Musk as a defendant.
The plaintiffs portray the issue as part of a broader pattern they attribute to rapid expansion of AI-related infrastructure, saying the AI boom has subjected thousands of residents nationwide to similar disturbances. The complaint centers its claims on negligence and public nuisance as the legal theories for relief.
At this stage, the filing sets out alleged harms and the relief sought. The case will proceed through the federal court system, where the parties and the court will determine the appropriate next steps, including whether the class will be certified and the merits of the negligence and nuisance claims.