\u201cSo we should acknowledge that there are a lot of strong feelings about data centers in both directions, right?\u201d Watkins said.<\/p>\n
Later in the forum, he asked a question submitted from the audience, \u201cWhat is Google doing to combat misinformation [on data centers and A.I.]?\u201d<\/p>\n
Matos answered, \u201cIronically, the Internet is not the best place for this. It\u2019s engagements like this. \u2026 Meeting people in person, giving the opportunity for question and answers such as this and also panels informed to engage with people directly is our next solution.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe take ownership for the lack of transparency in the past,\u201d Matos added.<\/p>\n
More discussion is on the way, Creighton said.<\/p>\n
For example, the Legislature will hold months of hearings on data centers and related issues in the next year\u2019s session, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cDecision makers will be held responsible for making the best decisions for this state \u2013 our natural resources,\u201d said Creighton, who stepped down from the Texas Senate to become chancellor less than a year ago.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think what the public concern is tied to is risk versus reward and just making sure that the public is safeguarded, that our natural resources are safeguarded and that \u2013 as you all are doing \u2013 you\u2019re getting the information out in our communities,\u201d Creighton said.<\/p>\n
![\"Matthew](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/chamber_ai_data_center_event_1920x1080_03.jpg\")
Matthew Watkins (left) and George P. Bush (right) Credit: Staff photo.<\/p>\n
Data center skeptics<\/p>\n
Steven Sanders, former candidate for Lubbock mayor, spoke on behalf of half a dozen or so protesters outside the event.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere they chose to try to do it at the first time in Northeast Lubbock was terrible because that part of the city needs rooftops,\u201d Sanders said.<\/p>\n
A City Council vote or Planning and Zoning Commission vote is not enough for such an important issue, he said and also advocating for an 18-month moratorium on any data center proposal in Lubbock.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese are our resources we\u2019re talking about. This isn\u2019t an ordinance for whether or not kids can stay at the park \u2019til 12 o\u2019clock at night. This is our water and our electricity we\u2019re talking about. And this will affect people\u2019s incomes and people\u2019s bills. This is going to affect all of that,\u201d Sanders said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re not saying we\u2019re against data. We\u2019re saying we don\u2019t want one here in our city. \u2026 If they want to do a data center, there\u2019s plenty of other places in Texas.\u201d Sanders added.<\/p>\n
![\"Protestors](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/chamber_ai_data_center_event_1920x1080_02.jpg\")
Former city council candidate Adam Hernandez (2nd from left) meets with protesters outside the AI data center discussion. Credit: Staff photo.<\/p>\n
In the May mayoral and City Council races, LubbockLights.com put questionnaires to candidates with four of them outright opposed, three others expressing a high level of caution and only one making an outright statement of support.<\/p>\n
Tina and Mark Amezquita, who live in south-central Lubbock, attended the forum and still have concerns.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of information that was talked about, but it was very vague. And so, we need to know more details,\u201d she said, adding there was too much \u201cbeat around the bush.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her husband said there\u2019s talk of using nuclear power on sites. Fermi, northeast of Amarillo, is the only West Texas project that\u2019s announced a plan for nuclear power.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have to weigh the resources, the cost, the impact to the environment,\u201d he said, adding people need to know if such plans are sustainable.<\/p>\n
She was concerned there are already too many data centers. According to cloudscene.com, the United States has more than 5,400 of them.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many more do we need?\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
China and national security<\/p>\n
The panelists made their case as to why more data centers are needed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re 27 days ahead of China on AI. We\u2019re 27 years behind China on nuclear [power],\u201d Creighton said.<\/p>\n
Bush, also a former intelligence officer, said, \u201cWe need the AI models to be underpinned and backed by Western civilizational values \u2013 that we uphold and hold dear \u2013 rather than a Chinese state-controlled model.\u201d<\/p>\n
Data centers drive A.I. or artificial intelligence, allowing a nation to better protect its digital network. Falling behind is bad. For example, Bush said Chinese actors were \u201caccessing President Trump\u2019s phone\u201d during the previous election cycle \u2013 a reference to the cyber espionage group called Salt Typhoon.<\/p>\n
Osborne said it\u2019s better that data centers are in the United States instead of another country.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf that data center is controlled in a foreign area that all of a sudden becomes an adversary of the United States, there\u2019s the danger of it being turned off,\u201d Osborne said.<\/p>\n
Safeguarding water supply<\/p>\n
Protesters mentioned water use as one of their top concerns.<\/p>\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/chamber_ai_data_center_event_1920x1080_04.jpg\")
A display during the AI data center discussion. Credit: Staff photo.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/volunteer_activism_96dp_000000_FILL0_wght400_GRAD0_opsz48.png\")
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