Water joins energy as top AI flashpoint (axios.com)

Water is fast becoming one of the defining fights around the AI buildout. Why it matters: After spending much of the past year defending data centers' electricity demands, major tech companies driving the AI boom are increasingly making the case that their water use is manageable too. Driving the news: Over the past several weeks, Google , Amazon and Microsoft have each launched new efforts to explain and justify the water use of their AI infrastructure, highlighting measures such as water replenishment projects, recycled-water use and new cooling technologies. Nvidia — the world's dominant AI chip maker — claimed this week that water concerns could be largely addressed by its latest generation of technology. What they're saying: "The growing conversation about water and energy use by data centers has forced these companies to scramble, to rethink what they're doing and to become more transparent about what they're doing," said Peter Gleick, co-founder of the Pacific Institute, a California-based water research nonprofit, and one of the nation's leading water experts. "They're starting to understand the reputational risk of the massive rollout of data centers that have big energy and water footprints." Friction point: Roughly 70% of people in the U.S. said they would oppose data centers in their communities, with equal weight placed on water and energy use as top concerns, according to Gallup polling in May . State of play: Such worries are infiltrating debates at all levels around the world. The United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called for more transparency on data centers' energy, water and land use in a speech earlier this week in London. Also this week, lawmakers in Virginia — which has the world's highest number of data centers — moved toward clamping down on the most water-intensive methods of cooling. Reality check: Compared to other major industries, data centers actually use far less water — a point tech executives are quick to point out and some independent experts agree with. Data: Cleanview analysis of government, industry and academic sources, including 2024 Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory study ; Note: Power plants include fossil fuel and nuclear facilities. Data centers include on-site cooling and associated electricity generation; Chart: Amy Harder/Axios "The projections for water demand are not eyebrow-raising," said Sarah Porter, director of the Kyl Center for Water Policy at Arizona State University. Concerns about water are largely a "substitute for concerns people have for this fast-developing industry." Yes, but: Experts, including both Gleick and Porter, caution that aggregate water-use figures can obscure local impacts, particularly in drought-prone regions where even modest demand can become contentious. "The important point is: How much water does a data center use in the region where it's taking the water from?" Gleick said. Comparisons to other industries also may do little to ease concerns in com