Activists break into building site of Microsoft datacentre in Amsterdam

Separate actions also take place outside fence and across Europe in backlash against impact of AI boom

Activists have stormed the site of a Microsoft datacentre being built in Amsterdam, as the backlash to the social and environmental harms of the AI boom spreads across Europe.

Protesters from Geef Tegengas, a Dutch direct action group, clashed with police while breaking into a construction site at Westpoort, Amsterdam, where some members climbed a crane, lit flares and tied helium balloons to equipment.

The action comes amid Europe-wide resistance to the rapid expansion of energy-hungry AI, with more than 100 groups involved in a two-day series of protests to demand moratoria on the construction of new datacentres.