Amazon says it no longer uses NDAs for data centres
AWS chief executive Matt Garman has confirmed Amazon no longer attaches non-disclosure agreements to its data centre deals, as the company unveils a $1 billion community fund called Built Together.
Amazon has stopped using non-disclosure agreements with the government agencies it works with on data centre projects. The commitment appears as a single line inside the “Amazon Data Center Commitment” published on the company's newsroom, a four-part statement of principles covering communities, jobs, engagement and responsible operation.
The post, published on 2 October 2026, frames the current AI build-out as the largest infrastructure project since the US interstate highway system, arguing that it is being financed by private industry rather than taxpayers. It also notes that more than 100 data centre moratoriums are being considered across the United States.
Built Together, and who decides
Alongside the principles, Amazon announced “Built Together”, a community investment framework starting in the US that will add more than $1 billion over five years on top of existing local spending. Amazon says the programme is organised around three areas communities identified as priorities: education and workforce pathways; energy affordability and water solutions; and flexible funding for local needs such as roads, parks and fire department equipment. Decisions on how the money is used sit with residents and local organisations rather than the company.
The education strand covers free community college and hands-on workforce training, with Amazon covering the costs left behind by financial aid. Amazon says it expects to connect more than 300,000 students to free degree access over five years, and to expand its Modular Training Centers so that up to 100,000 workers a year can be prepared for skilled roles by the end of 2028.
On affordability, Amazon is offering grants for energy and water efficiency upgrades to schools, community buildings and homes, targeting more than 300 buildings and 30,000 homes over five years and savings of roughly $700 per household a year. The company also says its average data centre uses less than 13,000 gallons of water a day, and that it remains 75% of the way towards a 2030 goal of returning more water to communities than it uses.
Why the NDA line matters
Non-disclosure agreements have become a flashpoint in the data centre debate, with campaigners arguing that secrecy leaves residents unable to scrutinise projects that reshape local electricity grids, land use and tax bases. Amazon counters that it now hosts open houses, shares plans as early as possible and publishes annual energy and water figures, and it lists the end of NDAs as one of 16 stated commitments.
Our opinion
Give Amazon credit for behaving like a company that expects to be scrutinised. Retiring NDAs and publishing annual energy and water numbers is what a business does when it has noticed the mood has turned, and it is a real improvement on the secrecy that surrounded early builds. But a voluntary principle is not a right, and the framing here is as revealing as the pledge: much of the document is spent rebutting critics rather than answering them, and $1 billion spread over five years is small change against capital spending counted in tens of billions. Communities win a vote on how the smaller pot is spent; they still get no say on whether the campus is built. The transparency commitment is worth having. It should not be mistaken for a veto the public never asked for.