DeSantis Takes Aim at Nvidia's Huang Over Data Center Surveillance Claims
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has taken aim at Nvidia Corp.'s (NASDAQ:NVDA) CEO Jensen Huang for referring to data centers as 'superintelligence factories'. In a statement, DeSantis said that these facilities are essentially surveillance centers. This comes amid his ongoing opposition to the use of Flock cameras, which he claims can capture dozens of images per vehicle encounter and transmit data via cellular networks.
The Governor's concerns center around data collection, potential misuse, and the lack of oversight, warning against the growth of a 'digital AI surveillance state'. This stance is part of his broader opposition to Flock cameras. DeSantis had previously ordered local police to remove automated license plate readers from state roads, limiting the use of technology provided by private surveillance firms like Flock Safety.
This development follows a recent statement by Huang during a panel discussion alongside Elon Musk at the launch of the America.gov portal. He described data centers as 'superintelligence factories' because they produce something of economic value. Additionally, this comes in the wake of President Donald Trump signing an executive order directing the federal government to replace the terms 'Artificial Intelligence' and 'AI' with 'Super Intelligence' or 'SI' in official communications.