Amid growing backlash against data centers, which now count the Vatican as a critic, four of the companies pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into their build-out are backing a new initiative focused on testing new and environmentally friendly technologies in data centers.

Microsoft, Google, Amazon and Meta have signed on to the Data Center Innovation Initiative, an effort led by nonprofit investor Elemental Impact that aims to fund up to 10 startups developing technologies around cooling, energy storage and low-carbon building materials to enable clean power, improve efficiency, and reduce energy and water use, according to a news release.

The DCII, which is backed by philanthropic contributions from Breakthrough Energy Discovery, Builders Vision Philanthropy, Salesforce and the Stolte Family Foundation, would invest between $500K and $5M in the startups by next year.

"We see this historic buildout of data centers as a way to pull forward important innovations that we've been investing in for many years — across energy, materials, and water," Elemental Impact CEO and founder Dawn Lippert said in a statement. "By collaborating with Amazon, Google, Meta, and Microsoft, we can help accelerate how these entrepreneurs are deploying — commercializing technologies that reduce emissions and deliver more positive impact for communities, including affordable, reliable energy."

Elemental will support collaboration between local stakeholders, investment in workforce development and promoting "project benefits" for Microsoft, Google, Amazon and Meta, according to the release.

The move comes as climate concerns over the artificial intelligence boom surge across the globe. This month, Pope Leo XIV warned in an encyclical — essentially a position paper for the Roman Catholic Church's stance on an issue — about the danger of AI, calling out the enormous amounts of energy and water used to operate data centers.

"As their complexity increases, especially in the case of large language models, the need for computing power and storage capacity grows too, which requires an extensive network of machines, cables, data centers and energy-intensive infrastructure," Leo wrote in the encyclical, titled Magnifica Humanitas. "For this reason, it is essential to develop more sustainable technological solutions that reduce environmental impact and help protect our common home."

At the current growth rate for AI, about 24 to 44 million metric tons of carbon dioxide will enter the atmosphere — which is equivalent to adding 5 to 10 million cars to U.S. roadways, according to a 2025 report by Cornell University researchers.

Big Tech firms like Microsoft, Google, Amazon and Meta have faced increased pressure from investors over the water and power use in U.S. data centers as they push to ramp up AI spending.

All signed on to the White House's Ratepayer Protection Pledge in March, agreeing not to pass on the energy costs for their data centers to ratepayers, although U.S. Energy Secretary Chris White acknowledged at a Bisnow event this month that there is no monitoring or enforcement mechanism in place.

The four giants spent a combined $130B in the first quarter of 2026, a 71% increase from last year, amid higher-than-expected revenue growth tied to AI. They plan to increase spending from last year by more than 60% to more than $725B in 2026.

"Data centers are uniquely positioned to serve as catalysts for clean energy and sustainable building materials," Meta Vice President of Energy and Sustainability Nat Sahlstrom said in a statement. "What excites us about the DCII is the focus on advancing emerging technology projects, building on Meta's commitment to designing, building and operating sustainable and innovative data centers."