Concerns have been raised about the project's water consumption, its colossal power use, the rushed nature of its approval, not to mention its sheer size. But Gov. Spencer Cox says those worries miss the point. Americans, he recently said, need to wake up to the fact that the country is in a high-stakes race for AI dominance, and data centers are necessary to win that battle. Local reporters Hugo Rikard-Bell, Leia Larsen and Brigham Tomco join us to explain what’s going on with the Stratos Project and where it’s headed from here.
GUESTS
- Gabi Finlayson | Senior partner at Elevate Strategies, a Democratic political consulting firm.
- Hugo Rickard-Bell | KUER politics reporter and co-host of the podcast “State Street”.
- Leia Larsen | Water and land use reporter, Salt Lake Tribune.
- Brigham Tomco | Staff writer, Deseret News.
Airdate: May 14 and 16, 2026