xAI offers to buy Mississippi homes if sellers stay out of noise lawsuit

An xAI subsidiary is offering to buy homes near its Southaven, Mississippi, power plant—but sellers must agree not to join a lawsuit over its noise. The Guardian reported the condition on October 28, as county records showed five purchases in a neighborhood where residents describe disrupted sleep and pressure to leave.

In a letter delivered to nearby Colonial Hills residents, MZX, the subsidiary operating the site, says it “requires property for its business purposes.” Its offer to purchase houses includes a contractual condition barring sellers from joining the noise case brought by resident Jason Haley and other plaintiffs.

DeSoto County records show MZX bought five neighborhood homes since October 9, 2026. The potential reach is larger: in a recorded conversation heard by the Guardian, a realtor described a target of 418 homes and said 18 owners had agreed to sell. Those figures are the realtor’s account, not confirmed company totals.

xAI did not answer the Guardian’s questions about those numbers or its neighborhood plans. The company denies the claims in the noise lawsuit and has previously said it cares about being a good neighbor.

Leaving home or joining the case

Three residents filed the lawsuit in June 2026, alleging near-constant noise, vibrations and other nuisance-level harms from the power plant. The site uses temporary gas turbines to supply nearby data centers. Residents interviewed by the Guardian compared the sound to an airplane engine that does not stop.

Haley, one of the plaintiffs, has owned his home for 20 years and lives about half a mile from the turbines. He described a high-pitched hum alongside an overhead-airplane sound, saying he sometimes leaves home or plays music until he falls asleep exhausted.

Neighbor Gavin Foust said his elderly neighbors had agreed to sell, despite planning to remain in their house for the rest of their lives. He attributed their decision to wanting to escape the turbines. Foust said he would reject an offer himself because of the requirement not to sue.

The buyout has multiple purposes which are to provide homes for some employees and a goodwill gesture from a good corporate citizen for those who perceive the industrial development near them as a negative.

Darren Musselwhite, Southaven mayor, speaking to the Guardian

City support, disputed relief

Musselwhite said the purchases were not intended to create a company city “at this point,” adding that such a plan had never been mentioned to him. He has championed the data centers for jobs and opportunity, and said the development would generate unprecedented tax revenue for DeSoto County taxpayers.

The company has changed its power output and built sound-dampening walls. Musselwhite called noise a top priority but said city monitors had not detected a breach of the local ordinance’s 70-decibel limit. That assessment contrasts with residents’ accounts of persistent disturbance, including piano teacher Elizabeth Rose’s description of being awakened at 2am and 3am.

The plant also faces a permitting dispute. The US Environmental Protection Agency determined that dozens of temporary turbines were operating without permits required by federal law, according to the Guardian. The agency said enforcement of those permit requirements was a matter for the state.

In July, xAI agreed with state regulators to convert the plant into a permanent gas-fired facility by summer 2027. The Guardian reported that the replacement should reduce noise from the temporary turbines. Haley remains unconvinced that relief will follow: “I’m still hopeful but I’m not confident,” he said.