About Metrofraud

Metrobloks is a Los Angeles-based tech startup that launched in June 2024 after securing $5.2 million in seed money through Current Equity Partners. Although it claims to have five data centers, four in the U.S. and one in France, it has not built a single one. In April 2025, Metrobloks acquired a 4.5-acre plot of land in Miami-Dade County to build its first data center. However, the Data Center Dynamics article announcing the acquisition states that there were no projected timeline for construction that accompanied the land acquisition. Furthermore, it also notes that its website “lists a 34.2MW, 196,980 sq ft (18,300 sqm) data center in Milan, Italy.” As of October 2025, that “data center” no longer appears on its website.

The other locations Metrobloks claims to have data centers are Paris, Pheonix, Detroit, and Indianapolis.

Metroboks’ alleged commitments

Metrobloks claims to build “sustainable” data centers that are immune from the well-documented environmental, social, and economic problems of their competitors. Because they haven’t built anything yet, there is no evidence to disprove these claims. However, we can examine how they’re approaching the Indianapolis data center they claim is underway and compare it to their commitment to “ensuring transparency” and “delivering trusted infrastructure for customers, partners, and communities alike.”

The first community meeting occured on September 23 at the Frederick Douglass Park & Family Center. Although no press cameras were allowed, WRTV’s Amber Grigley sat in on the meeting. According to her reporting, Metrobloks CEO again lied about the data centers Metrobloks operates. As she wrote, Metrobloks CEO Ernest

“Popescu said he founded Metrobloks to bring local multi-tenanted metropolitan urban data centers close to internet exchange points. Right now, they have centers in six metropolitan areas, including Phoenix, Miami and Kansas City, plus a few in Europe. Metrobloks is hoping to add this location on North Sherman Drive to the list.”

Residents of Martindale-Brightwood raised concerns over the health, environmental, property, and overall economic costs of the project. What is most telling is how the evening ended:

“Metrobloks plans to spend the next few months holding informational input sessions like the one held Tuesday night and meeting with neighborhood leaders before filing an official proposal.”

Popescu quickly threw out all commitments to “transparency” and the involvement and input of the community and other stakeholders out the window, however. Metroblocs pulled out of the next scheduled community dialogue, which they scheduled for Tuesday, October 21.

Environmental justice director for the Hoosier Environmental Council Paula Brooks told Mirror Indy they opted for a closed-door meeting with a select group of unnamed “community leaders.” In other words, Metrobloks is keeping the community out of the conversation and has no commitment to transparency as they push ahead, not even offering an explanation for pulling out of the meeting they organized.

This should be enough to make all residents at least skeptical of Metrobloks as an entity.

However, true to their commitment to transparency and pursuing the good of their community, residents of Indianapolis and the Martindale-Brightwood community in particular are moving forward with the open community conversation Metrobloks initially scheduled on Tuesday, October 21 at the Frederick Douglass Park & Family Center from 6:00 – 7:15 pm.