Fortune Editors Elon Musk's pollution problem

Elon Musk’s xAI data center in Memphis. (Photo: Houston Cofield/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Critics are piling on Elon Musk over pollution from 35 methane gas turbines used to power a data center in Memphis for xAI, the company behind his Grok AI service. 

The broad details of the allegations have been detailed previously, including by Fortune. But the latest article from Politico sheds new light on the topic, such as the facility’s status as one of the surrounding county’s biggest polluters with up to 2,000 tons of nitrogen oxide emissions annually. 

Environmentalists and local residents question why local officials have let Musk’s company operate the gas turbines without pollution controls or permits, while letting emissions waft across the neighborhood. Local officials responded that the turbines are temporary and therefore aren’t required to be permitted until after being used for a year.

Critics are dubious about that decision. Meanwhile, xAI says it has submitted permit applications for 15 of the turbines, but will wait until they are approved to install pollution controls. 

The easiest solution would be connecting the data center to electrical grid, eliminating the need for the gas turbines. But that's months away, at best. 

Amazon’s self-driving car unit has recalled its vehicles after one of them crashed in Las Vegas on April 8. 

Zoox, the online retailing giant’s robotaxi division, temporarily took 270 of its cars off the road for a software update following the accident, CNBC reported. The crash involved an unoccupied Zoox car and a passenger vehicle that left minor damage to both. There were no injuries, Zoox said. 

“The recall surrounds a defect with the vehicle’s automated driving system that could cause it to inaccurately predict the movement of another car, increasing ‘the risk of a crash,’” CNBC said, citing a report submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

After getting their software updates, all of Zoox’s cars have returned to service. 

After taking over huge chunks of the domestic food delivery market, DoorDash and Uber are quickly expanding their international footprints. On Tuesday, both companies made major acquisitions to accelare their ambitions. 

DoorDash will pay $3.9 billion for U.K.-based Deliveroo, giving it a larger presence across Europe and in the Middle East. In 2022, it had paid $8.1 billion for Wolt, a Finnish food delivery service that also has a large foothold in Europe. 

Also on Tuesday, though unrelated to food, DoorDash paid $1.2 billion for U.S.-based SevenRooms, a U.S.-based developer of marketing and operations software for restaurants and hotels. The agreement sets up DoorDash to further expand beyond food delivery.  

Meanwhile, Uber added an 85% stake in Turkey-based food delivery service Trendoyl Go for $700 million. The deal instantly gives Uber Eats a place in the Turkish market, where previously, it only operated its ride-hailing business.