Datacentre giant accused of using AI while lobbying for Victorian minister’s support for hyperscale factory

Victorian jobs minister Melissa Horne has accused NextDC, one of Australia’s largest datacentre operators, of using artificial intelligence to draft a letter that urged her to lobby her colleague for approval of a massive expansion of the company’s M3 hyperscale AI factory in Footscray. The correspondence shows that Horne, a factional ally of Premier Ben Carroll, has been increasingly critical of the project, citing community concerns about the datacentre’s size, proximity to homes and potential long‑term impacts.

NextDC has applied for fast‑tracked approval to enlarge the M3 site to 10 hectares, drawing 225 MW of power and running continuously. Some residential properties are within 15 metres of the facility’s boundary, which is zoned industrial. Residents have voiced complaints that the government has been too quick to approve developments without fully considering the community’s concerns.

Earlier this month, NextDC chief executive Craig Scroggie personally emailed the minister, asking her to support the expansion. Horne replied, stating she could not lend her support and urged Scroggie to review AI‑generated content more closely, alleging factual errors in his letter. Both parties declined to comment further on the allegations.

Labor MP Katie Hall, whose electorate includes the Footscray datacentre, published Horne’s letter and highlighted the site’s proximity to over 800 homes, a kindergarten, maternal and child health services, and Stony Creek. Hall has previously raised concerns with the state’s AI minister and planning minister about the expansion, noting the reliance on diesel generators during power outages and the regular testing of these systems. In April, Hall warned that the planning minister’s decision on the expansion could not be appealed to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal.