AI Development Requires Large Amounts of Water
2023-09-14
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1Researchers say the methods used to create artificial intelligence (AI) systems require large amounts of water.
2As a result, people are calling on AI developers to reduce their water usage and take more responsibility for the environmental resources they use.
3The Associated Press recently reported on water usage by American-based OpenAI, the company that launched the ChatGPT AI tool.
4ChatGPT is a so-called "chatbot" designed to interact smoothly with humans and perform high-level writing.
5Such tools are also known as "generative AI" or "large language models."
6The development and training methods used to create large language models require powerful computing systems.
7This process uses a lot of electricity and produces a lot of heat.
8Data center operators pump in water to keep equipment cool.
9Open AI - which is backed by software maker Microsoft - operates a series of data centers in West Des Moines, Iowa.
10The city in the central part of the state is home to about 68,000 people.
11"They're building them as fast as they can," said Steve Gaer, who served as the city's mayor when Microsoft first arrived.
12He said the software maker was attracted to the city because of its efforts to improve public projects.
13The former official also said Microsoft provided a huge amount of money in taxes in support of the efforts.
14"But," Gaer said of the company, "they were pretty secretive on what they're doing out there."
15In 2020, Microsoft said it was developing one of the world's most powerful supercomputers for OpenAI.
16At the time, it did not name the Iowa city as home to the project.
17Microsoft described the effort as a "single system" with a huge number of semiconductors and processors to support AI workloads.
18In late May, Microsoft President Brad Smith made his first public comment about the company's new "AI supercomputing data center" in West Des Moines.
19He noted the center was built to support development efforts for the ChatGPT system.
20Water is taken from the nearby Raccoon and Des Moines rivers to cool down the Microsoft-OpenAI computing equipment, the AP reports.
21In its latest environmental report, Microsoft said its worldwide water usage rose 34 percent from 2021 to 2022 to almost 1.7 billion gallons.
22Industry experts have suggested the large increase was directly linked to the company's AI research.
23"It's fair to say the majority of the growth is due to AI," said Shaolei Ren.
24He is a researcher at the University of California, Riverside who has been studying the environmental effects of AI products such as ChatGPT.
25In a paper set to be published later this year, Ren's team estimates ChatGPT takes up 500 milliliters of water each time someone asks the tool a series of between five and 50 questions.
26The estimate also includes indirect usage companies generally do not measure.
27This includes water used to cool power plants that supply the data centers with electricity.
28"Most people are not aware of the resource usage underlying ChatGPT," Ren said.
29"If you're not aware of the resource usage, then there's no way that we can help conserve the resources."
30Ren noted that Google reported a 20 percent growth in water usage during the same period.
31He believes that growth is largely linked to the American-based search engine company's AI development work.
32Microsoft said in a recent statement to the AP that it is investing in research to measure the environmental effects of AI activities.
33The company promised to work on ways "to make large systems more efficient, in both training and application."
34In its own statement, OpenAI said it had given "considerable thought" to the best use of computing power.
35"We recognize training large models can be energy and water-intensive," it said.
36A West Des Moines government document from 2022 says the city "will only consider future data center projects" from Microsoft if those projects can "demonstrate and implement" technology to significantly reduce water usage from current levels.
37I'm Bryan Lynn.
1Researchers say the methods used to create artificial intelligence (AI) systems require large amounts of water. As a result, people are calling on AI developers to reduce their water usage and take more responsibility for the environmental resources they use. 2The Associated Press recently reported on water usage by American-based OpenAI, the company that launched the ChatGPT AI tool. ChatGPT is a so-called "chatbot" designed to interact smoothly with humans and perform high-level writing. Such tools are also known as "generative AI" or "large language models." 3The development and training methods used to create large language models require powerful computing systems. This process uses a lot of electricity and produces a lot of heat. Data center operators pump in water to keep equipment cool. 4Open AI - which is backed by software maker Microsoft - operates a series of data centers in West Des Moines, Iowa. The city in the central part of the state is home to about 68,000 people. 5"They're building them as fast as they can," said Steve Gaer, who served as the city's mayor when Microsoft first arrived. He said the software maker was attracted to the city because of its efforts to improve public projects. The former official also said Microsoft provided a huge amount of money in taxes in support of the efforts. 6"But," Gaer said of the company, "they were pretty secretive on what they're doing out there." 7In 2020, Microsoft said it was developing one of the world's most powerful supercomputers for OpenAI. At the time, it did not name the Iowa city as home to the project. Microsoft described the effort as a "single system" with a huge number of semiconductors and processors to support AI workloads. 8In late May, Microsoft President Brad Smith made his first public comment about the company's new "AI supercomputing data center" in West Des Moines. He noted the center was built to support development efforts for the ChatGPT system. 9Water is taken from the nearby Raccoon and Des Moines rivers to cool down the Microsoft-OpenAI computing equipment, the AP reports. In its latest environmental report, Microsoft said its worldwide water usage rose 34 percent from 2021 to 2022 to almost 1.7 billion gallons. Industry experts have suggested the large increase was directly linked to the company's AI research. 10"It's fair to say the majority of the growth is due to AI," said Shaolei Ren. He is a researcher at the University of California, Riverside who has been studying the environmental effects of AI products such as ChatGPT. 11In a paper set to be published later this year, Ren's team estimates ChatGPT takes up 500 milliliters of water each time someone asks the tool a series of between five and 50 questions. The estimate also includes indirect usage companies generally do not measure. This includes water used to cool power plants that supply the data centers with electricity. 12"Most people are not aware of the resource usage underlying ChatGPT," Ren said. "If you're not aware of the resource usage, then there's no way that we can help conserve the resources." 13Ren noted that Google reported a 20 percent growth in water usage during the same period. He believes that growth is largely linked to the American-based search engine company's AI development work. 14Microsoft said in a recent statement to the AP that it is investing in research to measure the environmental effects of AI activities. The company promised to work on ways "to make large systems more efficient, in both training and application." 15In its own statement, OpenAI said it had given "considerable thought" to the best use of computing power. "We recognize training large models can be energy and water-intensive," it said. 16A West Des Moines government document from 2022 says the city "will only consider future data center projects" from Microsoft if those projects can "demonstrate and implement" technology to significantly reduce water usage from current levels. 17I'm Bryan Lynn. 18The Associated Press reported this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the report for VOA Learning English. 19_____________________________________________ 20Words in This Story 21semiconductor - n. a material, such as silicon, that permits electricity to move through it more easily when its temperature increases 22underlying - adj. used to describe something on which something else is based 23conserve - v. to keep and protect something from damage, change or waste 24efficient - adj. working or operating quickly and in a safe, organized way 25application - n. the way in which something can be used for a particular purpose 26aware - adj. having or showing realization, perception, or knowledge 27implement - v. to take steps to put into practice; to carry out 28significant - adj. of a noticeably or measurably large amount