xAI offers to buy Southaven homes if owners drop claims over plant noise

A subsidiary of Elon Musk's xAI is offering to buy homes near its power plant in Southaven, Mississippi, if owners give up claims in a class action over noise and vibration, according to a letter published by the Mississippi Free Press [2]. On 28 October, The Verge cited a Guardian report that xAI plans to buy 418 homes [3].

What is xAI offering residents?

MZX Tech, an xAI subsidiary, is offering to buy Southaven homes in exchange for a release of claims tied to the lawsuit. According to the letter, sellers sign a real estate contract and then a separate release agreement at closing [2][3]. After that, they could not recover damages from the lawsuit or bring claims of their own, the letter says [2].

Residents told the Mississippi Free Press that offers appear to be based on appraisal values on sites such as Zillow; the letter itself names no price [2]. The plaintiffs' lawyers name Burch Realty Group and Cushman and Wakefield among the brokers making offers [1].

How many homes are involved?

The Guardian reported that a realtor told one resident xAI plans to buy 418 homes, according to The Verge. The same report said 18 homeowners already plan to sell, and renters say they are being told to leave with 60 days' notice after landlords agreed to sell [3]. xAI has not confirmed these figures in any source we reviewed.

What is the lawsuit about?

The class action, Haley et al. v. X.AI Corp. and MZX Tech LLC, alleges that noise and vibration from the plant at 2875 Stanton Road South disrupt residents' lives and lower property values [1]. It was filed in June by three residents and says more than 10,000 class members live in the affected area [2].

The plaintiffs' lawyers say no court has examined or approved the home buyout offers. They also say the release residents would have to sign has not been made public, so it is unclear exactly which rights a seller gives up [1]. The suit seeks a court order to reduce the noise and compensation for past disruption [1].

The plant powers xAI data centers in neighboring Tennessee [2]. State documents showed 69 unpermitted turbines at the site as of 31 July, the Mississippi Free Press reports, and the NAACP sued xAI in April over their use [2].

Our read

Opinion: Buying out neighbours is a normal way to grow an industrial site, but tying the purchase to dropping a pending class action changes what residents are weighing. Until the release terms are public, sellers are trading a known price for rights nobody outside the deal has seen.

What we could not verify

• The figures of 418 homes and 18 sellers; they come from a realtor quoted by The Guardian, as relayed by The Verge, and we did not read The Guardian's report.
• The full text of the release agreement; the plaintiffs' lawyers say it has not been made public.
• Prices offered to residents; the letter names none.
• xAI's or MZX's response to the latest reports; xAI did not respond to the Mississippi Free Press.