Since the beginning of this year, the craze of artificial intelligence (AI) has swept the world. However, did you know that talking to artificial intelligence also consumes water? What is the reason behind AI water consumption? How much water do tech giants consume every year? If a user asks ChatGPT 10 to 50 questions, 500 ml of water may be consumed. And if thousands of users ask questions to AI at the same time, it is difficult to estimate how much water will be consumed.


Why does AI consume water resources?

Training and running large AI models usually requires tens of thousands of servers to provide computing resources, storage resources, and low-latency network connections. These servers are deployed in clusters in physical places called "data centers." When they work together, they generate highly concentrated heat in a short period of time, so a large amount of water is required for cooling.


Take Microsoft and Google for example. In 2022, Microsoft used a total of about 1.7 billion gallons (about 6.4 billion liters) of water, which is equivalent to filling about 2,500 Olympic-sized swimming pools; while Google's data centers and offices used a total of 5.6 billion gallons (about 21.2 billion liters) of water, which is equivalent to 8,500 Olympic-sized swimming pools.

AI water consumption is growing rapidly


Data shows that the computing power required by AI is now expected to double every 100 days, and may increase more than a million times in the next five years. Researchers predict that by 2027, global AI demand may require 6.6 billion cubic meters of water, almost equivalent to the annual water withdrawals of Washington State in the United States.


Ann Skeeter, senior director of the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University: I think regulators will start taking action soon, and the European Union will increase relevant regulatory requirements next year, requiring companies to disclose their water use.