Report: utilities can seize private land for AI data center power lines

Power companies can use eminent domain law to seize private land for new transmission lines needed to serve AI data centers, according to a report, though public-use requirements and state-law limits still apply. The mechanism, long used for other utility infrastructure, is now being applied to AI-driven power buildouts.

Why it matters: AI's power demands are starting to reshape property and utility law, not just electricity markets: landowners who refuse to sell can still lose their property to feed data center growth. It's another sign of AI infrastructure colliding with local regulation, alongside cases like New Mexico's pipeline rejection for Oracle's Project Jupiter.