About Responsible Compute

Our Story

Responsible Compute was originally incorporated in Oregon as The Discourse Project — an organization focused on fostering informed public conversation around emerging technology. As AI infrastructure began reshaping communities across the Pacific Northwest, our focus sharpened around a more specific and urgent question: as data centers and compute clusters expand rapidly, who benefits — and who bears the costs?

That question led us to reorient our mission and rename the organization. The name changed; the commitment to community-centered thinking did not.

Data centers, compute clusters, and AI infrastructure are increasingly being sited in rural and semi-rural communities — often with minimal input from those communities and with economic benefits flowing primarily to distant shareholders. We believe this doesn't have to be the case.

As a not-for-profit, we work to develop frameworks, tools, and partnerships that help communities and small businesses engage with AI infrastructure on their own terms — ensuring that the power, land, and economic resources involved serve local people and ecosystems.