Amazon Scraps Data Center NDAs Amid Backlash Over AI Power Demands

9 Oct 2026, 10:23 pm · 3h ago · 1 min read · TechCrunch AI

Amazon has announced it will stop using non-disclosure agreements when negotiating data center deals with local governments, mirroring a similar policy shift made by Microsoft earlier this year. The intense secrecy surrounding data center expansions has triggered severe community pushback, leading to hundreds of proposed and enacted moratoriums across municipalities from New York to San Francisco. At the same time, venture-backed startups are increasingly developing autonomous AI agents designed to handle consumer financial transactions and direct credit card access. This dual shift highlights mounting regulatory scrutiny on AI infrastructure alongside aggressive consumer automation developments.