Will Elon Musk's Data Centers Actually Help Memphis?

Elon Musk's company xAI is building massive data centers in Memphis, promising economic transformation. But at what cost? Abby is joined by Strong Towns Blog Editor and podcast host Asia Mieleszko to dissect the billion-dollar AI infrastructure boom and explore why cities keep falling for "shiny object urbanism." ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES Hear more from Asia on the brand-new podcast Stacked Against Us ! " Elon Musk Gambles Billions in Memphis to Catch Up on AI " by Alexander Saeedy, The Wall Street Journal (October 2025) " Shiny Object Urbanism " by Billy Cooney " Where's the Wealth? " by Charles Marohn ‍ Abby Newsham (X/Twitter) Theme Music by Kemet the Phantom . Hey listener! You hear from us all the time, but today we want to hear from you. We want your feedback on this podcast and any other Strong Towns podcast you like to listen to. Please fill out this quick survey to share your thoughts: strongtowns.org/survey This podcast is made possible by Strong Towns members. Click here to learn more about membership.

You can listen to Will Elon Musk's Data Centers Actually Help Memphis? online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Will Elon Musk's Data Centers Actually Help Memphis? is an episode from Upzoned by Strong Towns.

This episode is 50:26 long.

This episode was published on Nov 5, 2025.

Yes. Use the heart button on the episode page to add it to your favorite episodes list.

Yes. This page shows related episodes from Upzoned when more episodes are available from the podcast feed.