X Busts 200,000-Account Chinese Bot Farm Targeting U.S. AI Data Centers

X's Global Government Affairs team identified a 200,000-account bot farm, with 200 active accounts suspected of being operated by Chinese actors. The network specifically targeted American energy policy to amplify negative sentiment around AI data centers. Inauthentic accounts operating under American names shared legitimate news stories about PJM Interconnection raising prices by 76%, alongside AI-generated political cartoons. A recent poll indicates that actual local resistance to data centers remains largely driven by object-level environmental and economic harms that communities are dealing with. “These posts contained claims that AI data centers are driving up household electricity prices and straining the grid. Others included AI-generated cartoons that depicted data-center operators enriching themselves at the public's expense.” — X Global Government Affairs team