Kevin O’Leary doesn’t think modern AI data centers are causing water scarcity, as critics often claim. During a recent appearance on Glenn Beck’s radio show, the Canadian billionaire and “Shark Tank” investor claimed that advances in cooling technology have significantly reduced water consumption. “Those days are over,” he said, comparing today’s facilities to “golf courses” in terms of water usage.Referring to the company’s planned data center project in Utah, O’Leary said the first phase of development would have 1.4 gigawatts of power capacity and be “no different than a golf course” in terms of water consumption. “Because data centers, not just my project, any new data center is like a golf course now,” O’Leary said.O’Leary, whose O’Leary Ventures is developing AI data centers in Utah and Canada, said concerns about water use are based on older equipment rather than modern infrastructure.
Kevin O’Leary says new data center uses less water
“New modern data centers don’t need to be located near water like they used to in Virginia 15 years ago, where data centers got a bad name because they consumed so much water,” O’Leary said on his radio show.Data centers use water directly to cool servers and indirectly the electricity needed to power them. However, some technology companies claim that new cooling systems, including closed-loop technology, have reduced water consumption compared to older facilities.Earlier this year, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman also denied claims that AI services consume large amounts of water.Asked about concerns about AI companies’ water use, Altman said, “Water is completely fake.” “It used to be true, we used to do evaporative cooling in data centers, but we don’t do that anymore. On the Internet, you see stuff like, ‘Don’t use ChatGPT. It takes 17 gallons of water per query,'” he added.A previous Business Insider investigation found that some of the nation’s largest data center facilities were allowed to use more water each day than nearly 49,000 Americans would normally consume.
Kevin O’Leary calls for AI data centers to generate their own electricity
O’Leary also argued that future data center projects should take responsibility for building their own power infrastructure, rather than relying entirely on the existing power grid.“As part of a national solution, the new rules of engagement should be: If we are going to deploy data centers everywhere, I have to bring my power. “We can stay competitive by spending billions of dollars to build power and putting some of that back into the grid,” he said.Meanwhile, O’Leary is facing a defamation lawsuit over comments he made during multiple media appearances in which he accused some opponents of his Utah data center project of being backed by the Chinese Communist Party. Before the lawsuit was filed, O’Leary said on social media that there was no evidence that critics of the project were funded by China.Attorney Jeffrey Neiman, who represents O’Leary, previously told Business Insider in a statement that his client “vigorously defends this lawsuit” and intends to file a counterclaim. Neiman also described the lawsuit as a “cash grab.”
