Water consumption in data centers — no small issue

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Training and using AI tools like ChatGPT is energy-intensive and heats up processors. Fresh water is often used for cooling. If that warmer water is then recycled to its original source, it impacts the ecosystem.

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AI and its impact on the environment

AI can make day-to-day life easier, but its high energy requirements raise environmental concerns. After all, building and operating data centers involves large quantities of power, water, and raw materials.

The forgotten environmental costs of data centers

Besides water and electricity, data centers also require metals like silicon, copper, gold, and aluminum. Mining these resources is harmful to the environment.

Protesters halt new data center

In Chile, an environmental organization successfully protested against Google’s construction of a new AI data center. The company announced it would adhere to stricter environmental protection guidelines.

Why does AI need so much energy?

Modern AI models like ChatGPT operate based on large language models and are trained using huge amounts of data. This process requires high-performance processors and is very energy-intensive.

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