Last month, journalist Karen Hao posted a Twitter thread acknowledging that there was a substantial error in her blockbuster book Realm of AI. Hao had written that a proposed Google data center in a city near Santiago, Chile, could consume “more than a thousand times the amount of water consumed by the entire population” – a figure that, thanks to a misunderstanding of the unit, appears to be off by a magnitude of 1,000.
In the thread, Hao thanked Andy Masley, the head of an effective altruism organization in Washington, DC, for bringing the correction to her attention. Masley has in recent months questioned some of the figures and rhetoric common in popular media about water use and AI on his Substack. Masley's main post, titled “The AI Water Issue Is Fake,” has been linked in recent months by other writers with large followings, including Matt Yglesias and Noah Smith. (Hao said in her Twitter thread that she would work with her publisher to fix the errors; her publicist told me she was taking time off and was unavailable to chat with me for this story.)
When I called him to talk more about AI and water, Masley emphasized that he is not an expert, but “just someone” who is interested in how the media handles this topic – and how it shapes the opinions of those around him.
“I would sometimes talk about using ChatGPT at parties, and people would say, 'Oh, that takes so much energy and water. How can you use that?'” he says. “I was a little surprised when people talked so grimly about just a little bit of water.”
As local and national opposition to data centers has grown, so have concerns about their environmental impact. Earlier this week, more than 230 green groups sent a letter to Congress, warning that AI and data centers “threaten America's economic, environmental, climate, and water security.”
The AI industry has started to fight back. In November, the co-chairs of the AI Infrastructure Coalition, a new industry group, wrote an op-ed for Fox News addressing environmental concerns. “Water consumption? Minimal and often recycled – less than US golf courses,” they wrote. One of the op-ed's authors, former Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, is currently advocating for a data center project in the state that has sparked local opposition, including over concerns about water use. The coalition also approvingly retweeted a message from Masley about the impact of AI on energy prices. (Masley maintains a lengthy disclaimer on his Substack, refuting accusations that he is paid by the industry to share his opinions.)
