CubCloud AI Sues Missoula Over Data Center Rules
A Missoula AI company argues the city's zoning amendment violates Montana's Right to Compute Act.
Updated on Nov. 9, 2026 in Data Centers
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CubCloud AI, a Missoula company, filed a lawsuit Nov. 4 against the city over an October zoning amendment that blocks data center development within city limits. The complaint cites the Montana Right to Compute Act and asks the court to declare the city's rule unlawful and halt its enforcement.
Why it matters
The case tests how state law protecting computing activity interacts with local zoning authority in Missoula. Council Member Kristen Jordan's proposed two-year moratorium on data center development could further shape how the city regulates such facilities.
The former loophole permitted data centers citywide where they occupied less than 50% of a facility's floor space. The city has not yet responded in court, and the outcome of the Right to Compute Act challenge remains unknown.
The players
CubCloud AI
A Missoula-based artificial intelligence company founded about a year ago that operates a data center facility on Kestrel Drive and is the plaintiff in the lawsuit.
Goldwater Institute
A Phoenix-based public policy research organization that represents CubCloud AI through its Big Sky Legal Project.
Kristen Jordan
A Missoula City Council member who is proposing a two-year moratorium on data center development in the city.
The details
CubCloud AI, founded about a year ago and employing 18 people, operates a facility on Kestrel Drive near the Missoula Montana Airport. The amendment revises the definition of a data center and regulates facilities by how their equipment is used, closing a loophole that had permitted data centers under a floor-space threshold.
Timeline
2025: The Montana Legislature passed the Right to Compute Act.
October: The city approved the zoning amendment closing the loophole.
Nov. 4: CubCloud AI filed its lawsuit against the city.
Coming weeks: Jordan's two-year moratorium proposal is likely to go before the council.
Legal Context
The lawsuit is the first legal test of Montana's Right to Compute Act against a local government's zoning power over computing facilities. Its outcome could define how far municipalities can restrict data centers in a state that has explicitly protected computing activity.
Residents and businesses in Missoula may see changes to where computing facilities can operate depending on how the zoning dispute and any moratorium are resolved. The outcome could affect local development options and the city's approach to data center construction.
The takeaway
Local zoning rules and state-level protections for computing activity can come into direct conflict, and the courts may ultimately decide the boundary. Readers following land-use decisions in Missoula should watch the council agenda for the proposed moratorium.
What happens next
Council Member Kristen Jordan's two-year moratorium proposal is expected to come before the Missoula City Council in the coming weeks.
Further reading
Explore more coverage of Data Centers in Missoula and across the state.
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