Amazon Ditches Data Center NDAs as AI Infrastructure Transparency Push Grows
Amazon has announced it will stop using non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) when negotiating data center deals with local governments, a policy shift that follows a comparable move by Microsoft earlier in 2024. The change comes as communities across the United States have pushed back against the rapid expansion of AI infrastructure, leading to hundreds of proposed and enacted moratoriums in jurisdictions ranging from New York to San Francisco.
NDAs had allowed tech companies and utilities to keep details of data center agreements—including power consumption, water usage, and traffic impacts—hidden from public scrutiny. Critics argued this secrecy fueled mistrust, with local officials and residents saying they were left in the dark about projects that could reshape local grids, strain water supplies, and reshape neighborhoods.
The transparency push coincides with a separate trend: a growing wave of startups betting that consumers will grant AI agents direct access to sensitive accounts, including credit cards and financial services. While the two developments are distinct, both reflect the broader tension between AI's rapid expansion and the regulatory, community, and personal governance frameworks struggling to keep pace.