# ‘Paws Against the Machine’: Community backs humane society in fight against AI data center - WBRC

*Источник: WBRC*
*Дата: 2026-07-12*
*Язык: en*

**Кратко:** (WBRC) - The Greater Birmingham Humane Society (GBHS) has filed a lawsuit against Nebius, the company building an AI data center near the organization’s property, saying it could not get answers about how the facility would affect the animals in its care. Humane Society leaders say they have spent months asking Nebius how the AI factory, which they describe as operating on an industrial scale, will affect the animals housed nearby.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) - The Greater Birmingham Humane Society (GBHS) has filed a lawsuit against Nebius, the company building an AI data center near the organization’s property, saying it could not get answers about how the facility would affect the animals in its care.
The suit was filed Friday in Jefferson County Circuit Court.
Humane Society leaders say they have spent months asking Nebius how the AI factory, which they describe as operating on an industrial scale, will affect the animals housed nearby.
“They are like a manufacturer of steel or clothing, they just manufacture intelligence. The equipment is of an industrial scale,” said Allison Black Cornelius, President and CEO of the Greater Birmingham Humane Society.
Leaders say low and high frequencies produced by the facility are a central concern, noting that animals can hear ranges humans cannot.
The organization also has plans to build a new hospital on the adjacent property, but said the uncertainty has already affected fundraising.
“Our donors that were giving to us to help us finish that, they just stopped and said, look, we’re scared that this could be harmful,” Cornelius said.
Cornelius said GBHS reached out to Nebius when the company first purchased the land, but says meaningful communication never followed. She said the two sides eventually met once, but GBHS left with more concerns than it came in with.
“You get to a point where it seems the only way we’re probably going to get those answers is by a court intervening,” she said.
What the lawsuit seeks
The humane society said the suit is aimed at compelling Nebius to answer its questions and to determine whether the project received proper legal approval.
“We’re just really asking a court to ask Nebius to follow the same exact rules and laws that we had to follow when we bought this land several years ago,” Cornelius said.
“We’re not sure we can coexist there if Nebius is there, but we won’t know if we can’t get that information,” she said.
Community response
As the legal battle begins, local businesses have rallied around the organization. Cahaba Brewing Co. announced a beer called “Paws Against the Machine,” a peach sour with the tagline “sweet on animals, sour on AI factories.” For the rest of the month, one dollar from every drink sold will go to the Greater Birmingham Humane Society.
What’s next
Nebius and the city of Birmingham both said they do not comment on pending litigation. Separately, a judge ruled Friday that a lawsuit filed by Oxmoor Valley neighbors can move forward. The first hearing in that case is set for Tuesday at noon.
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