Greg Brockman explains how the public story about AI data center water use is partly wrong.
Rohan Paul Twitter · Rohan Paul (@rohanpaul_ai) · 2026-05-21
OpenAI co-founder Greg Brockman disputes the prevailing narrative on AI data center water consumption, arguing that closed-loop cooling systems recirculate stored water rather than continuously drawing fresh supplies.
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Extraction
Topics: ai-infrastructuredata-center-water-useai-environmental-impact
Claims
- AI data center cooling systems commonly use closed-loop designs that recirculate the same stored water.
- Closed-loop cooling functions more like a swimming pool than a running tap, meaning net freshwater draw is lower than commonly reported.
- The public story about AI data center water use is partly wrong due to misunderstanding of cooling system design.
Key quotes
Because the cooling-systems use a closed-loop design that circulates the same stored water instead of constantly pulling fresh water.
it works less like a running tap and more like [a swimming pool]