Amazon’s pooling its knowledge with other experts on the relationship between sustainable water usage and artificial intelligence.
The e-tail and technology giant announced as part of New York Climate Week Thursday that it had teamed with The Water Center at the University of Pennsylvania (WCP), the Water Environment Federation (WEF) and the Leading Utilities of the World to launch the Water-AI Nexus Center of Excellence (COE). The COE will focus on bridging the gap between AI’s impact on the environment and water-based sustainability outcomes.
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To address its mandate, the COE plans to set up best practices related to water use that can be applied throughout the AI and data-processing industries; conduct research and publish case studies on successful projects and collaborations; encourage partnership across different sectors of the industry and more.
The United Nations Environmental Report projects that about half of the world’s population will experience severe water stress by 2030. To curb that trend, the body said, entrepreneurs, leaders and researchers should be planning on “developing policies and technologies to reduce or maintain [water] consumption without compromising performance.”
Meanwhile, the explosion of interest in generative AI in recent years has done the opposite—and in many jurisdictions, in particular the United States, few regulations exist related to the continued growth of the technology. Generative AI models and the continued expansion of agentic AI have led to hundreds of data centers popping up across the country, and analysis from Bloomberg News found that two-thirds of new-build data centers have been set up in areas of the U.S. that experience high levels of water stress.
Part of the reason data centers are so water-intensive is that the servers processing requests at rapid speed generate heat that needs to be cooled in order to handle continued performance. And the number of data centers only continues to grow as demand for AI increases and businesses further invest in technology-based capabilities.
According to the University of Tulsa, the water companies use in data centers “is often treated with chemicals to prevent corrosion and bacterial growth, rendering it unsuitable for human consumption or agricultural use. This means that not only are data centers consuming large quantities of drinking water, but they are also effectively removing it from the local water cycle.” Large data centers often use millions of gallons of water in a day.
That reality puts a strain on utilities working to supply water, and on local communities in areas where data centers are housed. Howard Carter, president of the WEF, said the problems onslaught by continued water consumption needs to be addressed by professionals from both angles, which is why the non-profit is excited about the formation of the COE.
“Water utilities worldwide are facing unprecedented challenges from climate change and aging infrastructure, while simultaneously working to serve communities that depend on reliable, affordable water services,” Carter said in a statement. “The Water-AI Nexus Center of Excellence will accelerate innovation by connecting water professionals with AI experts to develop solutions that benefit both sectors as well as the communities they serve.”
In tandem with the launch of the COE, the collaborators released a report, called “Principles for Sustainable Water Use by Data Centers,” which they said outlines opportunities for data center operators to decrease negative impacts on the global water supply while still leveraging the resource as a portion of AI’s growth. That report relies on four main goalposts: choosing deliberate locations and designs for data centers of the future; working to optimize the data centers for more efficient outcomes; relying on sustainable water sources and finding ways to replenish water supplies in communities impacted by data centers. The COE plans to foster discussion at the WEF’s conference, which kicks off Saturday.
Beau Schilz, water principal at Amazon Web Services (AWS), said the company plans to use the COE as a way to further evaluate and upgrade its own policies and practices at the intersection of water and technology.
“We believe responsible innovation means both addressing our water footprint and using technology to solve global water challenges,” Schilz said in a statement. “At Amazon, we strive to reduce water use in our operations, which include logistics sites such as fulfillment centers, as well as in our corporate offices and grocery stores. We’re also committed to returning more water to communities than we use across our data centers by 2030—being a founding leader of the Center of Excellence will help not only Amazon in its goals, but others as well, as we aim to collectively transform water management worldwide.”
