OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has stirred controversy by dismissing concerns about resource consumption by artificial intelligence. He called claims about data centers’ water use “fake” and compared the energy used by AI systems to that of humans.
Altman was speaking on the sidelines of the India AI Impact Summit in an interview with The Indian Express when he was asked to address common criticisms of AI, such as its energy and water consumption.
Altman said that the claims circulating online that ChatGPT uses gallons of water per query were “completely untrue, totally insane,” and have “no connection to reality.”
Data centers typically use large amounts of water to cool electrical components and prevent overheating. Data center cooling technologies have reportedly promised reduced consumption, with some newer data centers no longer relying on water.
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However, despite improving efficiency, a report last month from water technology company Xylem and Global Water Intelligence projected that the water drawn for cooling would more than triple over the next 25 years as computing demand rises, putting pressure on water systems.
Altman said that concerns about energy consumption are more valid. “Not per query, but in total – because the world is using so much AI … and we need to move towards nuclear or wind and solar very quickly,” he said.
Altman pushed back when asked about previous comments by Microsoft founder Bill Gates, who has suggested that the efficiency of the human brain proves that AI can evolve to also become more energy efficient over time.
“One of the things that is always unfair in this comparison is people talk about how much energy it takes to train an AI model … But it also takes a lot of energy to train a human,” Altman said. “It takes like 20 years of life, and all the food you eat before that time, before you get smart.”
“The fair comparison is if you ask ChatGPT a question, how much energy does it take once a model is trained to answer that question, versus a human, and probably AI has already caught up on an energy efficiency basis, measured that way,” he added.
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Altman’s comparison of AI and human consumption drew criticism, with people online calling it “dystopian.” “He’s saying a really big spreadsheet and a baby are morally equivalent,” said researcher Matt Stoller on X. Another X user said “Anybody who talks like this about humans should not be allowed a job that in any way impacts other humans.”
Altman’s comments also drew criticism from Sridhar Vembu, co-founder and chief scientist of Indian software company Zoho Corporation, who was present at the summit. “I do not want to see a world where we equate a piece of technology to a human being,” the billionaire said in an X post.
According to a May report by the International Monetary Fund, electricity consumption by the world’s data centers in 2023 had already reached levels comparable to Germany or France, soon after the launch of OpenAI’s ChatGPT.