AI's growing thirst for water is becoming a public health risk

"As water-intensive data centres expand worldwide, their impact on sanitation, inequality and disease is emerging as a serious and under-examined threat. Bubble is probably the word most associated with AI right now, though we are slowly understanding that it is not just an economic time bomb; it also carries significant public health risks. Beyond the release of pollutants, the massive need for clean water by AI data centres can reduce sanitation and exacerbate gastrointestinal illness in nearby communities, placing additional strain on local health infrastructure."

"Generative AI is artificial intelligence that is able to generate new text, photos, code and more, and it has already infiltrated the lives of most people around the globe. ChatGPT alone is reported to receive around one billion queries in a single day, pointing to huge demand at the individual level. This, however, is only the tip of the iceberg. Companies such as Google, Apple and Microsoft are now embedding AI into their key products."

"As an example, a single AI-powered Google search is estimated to use up to 30 times more energy than its standard version. Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) are the current industry answer to this. They are chips that demand energy and produce heat. Though the thousands of small cores on GPUs enable parallel processing of massive, repetitive maths carried out by AI algorithms, a single chip can use up to 700 watts."

Water-intensive data centres expanding worldwide threaten sanitation, worsen inequality, and increase disease risk in nearby communities. Massive clean-water use for cooling reduces sanitation services and can exacerbate gastrointestinal illness, straining local health infrastructure. Generative AI demand is skyrocketing, with ChatGPT receiving around one billion queries daily and major companies embedding AI into products, increasing computational workload. AI-powered searches may use up to 30 times more energy than standard searches. GPUs, the industry solution, consume large power and produce substantial heat; a single chip can use up to 700 watts, requiring huge water-based cooling.

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