AI will consume as much water in 2030 as 1.3B people

(english.elpais.com)

23 points | by dnnddidiej 3 hours ago

7 comments

  • handoflixue 2 hours ago
    "The operation of AI will require 14,500 square kilometres of land"

    I'm always so confused by articles that try to scare you with big numbers. We have tons of land. Land is one of the few things we are not at all running out of, especially in the USA. The USA is 9,372,610 square kilometers. 1% of that is 93,000, so this is like 0.2% of the US?

    It's such a transparent scare tactic, and a clear sign the article isn't interested in raising any credible concerns - just rabble rousing.

    • verdverm 1 hour ago
      Not to mention that there are different types of water cooled data centers. We can pass regulations to force them to use the type that does not use evaporative cooling.

      Does it cost more? Yes.

      Can they afford it? Yes.

  • FloorEgg 2 hours ago
    That's nothing... at the current rate, datacenters will consume the total energy input of earth's biosphere by 2100!

    https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1GQbS34OkMF6q9r0ZyuSv...

  • fennecbutt 1 hour ago
    And how does that compare to farming almonds, alfalfa or the beef industry for your all American hamburger?

    Ah, so you're a vegan? Well compare it then to the water used to produce your foods, to manufacture the van that brings you the food and the extraction of the oil that powers it.

    Without context, stats about datacenter water usage are FUD bullshit.

    *billion people in subsaharan Africa lovely clickbait title who needs AI for slop.

    Also a site that "pay us to decline cookies" can fuck right off.

  • codeddesign 2 hours ago
    So..what you are saying is that the movie Oblivion is a documentary.
  • postalrat 2 hours ago
    The sun will remain the largest consumer of water for a very long time.
  • damnitbuilds 2 hours ago
    "B"

    Because "billion" was too hard to type.

  • rms2ds 3 hours ago
    Well the way its going, we will have so much more water when the iceburg(s) start really melting so problem solved right? lol