The Grip of AI
- 21 hours ago
- 3 min read
By: Sanchana Sundararajan
Ever heard of the phrases “Stop using AI, you are wasting water”, or “AI causes the death of polar bears”? These messages have been going around all social platforms, and many people have spread awareness regarding this topic with good intentions, but have failed to understand the deeper issue facing the world.
For context, AI has been around since the late 1950s, but recently was on the rise between late 2022 and 2024, primarily caused by the release of ChatGPT and subsequent advancements in generative models. These models quickly rose to popularity when people started using them for their convenience. AI was always present in research and technology, but became noticeable to everyday users during this time because of how accessible and helpful it felt.
The reason people are talking about AI wasting water or harming animals is that AI runs on data centers, which are massive facilities full of servers that store and process data. Servers need a lot of electricity and generate a lot of heat, so cooling systems are used to prevent them from overheating. Many of these cooling systems rely on water or liquid-based methods to absorb heat. This means when data centers work harder, they may use more water for cooling. It is important to note that the water is not being used by a single question or AI prompt but is part of the larger infrastructure that powers the internet. Streaming videos and uploading photos, playing games, and AI processing all rely on these data sentences (Masanet 2020 et al.).
These environmental effects also extend to wildlife. Data centers often use non-renewable energy sources, which contribute to carbon emissions. Carbon emissions trap heat in the atmosphere and speed up global warming. Rising temperatures melt Arctic ice, which reduces the habitat for polar bears and other animals. Water use for cooling can also affect rivers, lakes, and ecosystems that thrive on freshwater. So while AI is not directly killing polar bears, the energy and water used by the systems behind it can contribute to environmental problems over time (Strubell et al. (2019)
AI also has different effects on people. For teens, AI can have negative effects such as academic dishonesty, dependence on technology for answers, and pressure to keep up with peers who use AI. Adults may worry about AI replacing jobs or about privacy concerns when sharing information with AI systems. However, AI also has positive effects. For teens, it can help explain difficult concepts, support learning, boost creativity, and provide practice with skills like coding or languages. Adults can benefit from increased productivity, accessibility improvements for people with disabilities, and creative brainstorming assistance.
In conclusion, while messages like “AI wastes water” or “kills polar bears” are attention-grabbing, the real issue is how technology infrastructure is powered and cooled. Blaming individual users misses the larger environmental problem, which is the energy and water demands of data centers and their contribution to global warming. Understanding these details allows people to make smarter choices and have a clearer view of the real challenges we face.
Works Cited
Masanet, Eric, et al. Recalibrating Global Data Center Energy-Use Estimates. Journal of Renewable and Sustainable Energy, vol. 12, no. 5, 2020, pp. 1–13.
Russell, Stuart J., and Peter Norvig. Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach. 4th ed., Pearson, 2020.
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