MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) – xAI, the supercomputer company headquartered in Memphis and owned by trillionaire Elon Musk, is seeking to dismiss a lawsuit filed against them by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).
The lawsuit, initially filed by the NAACP alleges that xAI violated the Clean Air Act by operating methane gas turbines in Southaven, Mississippi, before an air permit was granted.
The Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) and Earthjustice, representing the civil rights group, filed a lawsuit against the tech company and its subsidiary MZX Tech on Tuesday.
Now, xAI and its subsidiary have filed a motion to dismiss the suit, citing that its operation is crucial to the nation’s economy.
In defense of xAI, the Department of Justice wrote a letter addressing the motion to dismiss, “dismissal of this civil enforcement action accords with federal policy, national security, and the public interest.”
The DOJ notes that xAI’s expansion is a national priority, suggesting that the NACCP’s lawsuit will hinder its growth.
Governor Reeves also penned a letter to the court, arguing that the lawsuit is a threat to private ownership in the state and that federal authorities should intervene to dismiss it.
If the court finds that xAI’s turbines were operating unlawfully, they could be asked to stop operating the turbines at its Southaven facility, and could be forced to pay fines for every day it violated federal law.
Click here to sign up for our newsletter!
Click here to report a spelling or grammar error. Please include the headline.
Copyright 2026 WMC. All rights reserved.