For many people, AI (which is scary and bad) using water (which we need to live) is deeply “offensive,” Andy said — especially when they don’t realize that digital goods (like the internet) have long had a physical (and water) cost, Andy said.

But people who care about the environment — Andy himself identifies as an environmentalist — should also care about precision, because hyperbolic reporting can mislead activists about where the problems actually are and fuel nonsensical climate policies.

https://www.piratewires.com/p/andy-masley-ai-water-crisis-isnt-real