Dive Brief:
- Amazon is teaming up with a group of researchers, water utilities and a nonprofit to create a hub that has a dual mission: leveraging artificial intelligence to tackle global water challenges and cultivate sustainable water practices for AI data centers.
- The Water-AI Nexus Center of Excellence — unveiled during Climate Week NYC and backed by The Water Environment Federation, The Water Center at the University of Pennsylvania and the Leading Utilities of the World — will convene experts from the water, utility and tech sectors to “address the complex relationship between digital infrastructure and water sustainability,” according to a Thursday release.
- The new hub is in line with Amazon’s goal of being “water positive” by 2030 or returning more water to communities and the environment than it uses directly across its data center operations. The tech and retail giant reached 53% of this goal last year, per its cloud computing subsidiary Amazon Web Services.
Dive Insight:
In addition to establishing a guide and framework for sustainable water practices for the data processing industry, the center will share research and findings on the topic through publications and events. The center will also provide a platform for sector experts, AI developers, policymakers and government officials to collaborate and engage on the intersection of water management and artificial intelligence.
The Water-AI Nexus hub also released a report Thursday that seeks to provide a roadmap for data center operators on how they can reduce their water footprint while boosting technological advancement. The “Principles for Sustainable Water Use by Data Centers” report outlines how data centers can optimize operational efficiency and target water replenishment for the communities they are located in, among other guidance.
"We believe responsible innovation means both addressing our water footprint and using technology to solve global water challenges,” Amazon Web Services Water Principal Beau Schilz said in the release. "We strive to reduce water use in our operations, which include logistics sites such as fulfillment centers, as well as in our corporate offices and grocery stores.”
The unveiling of the center comes a few months after Amazon announced it was updating its water recycling program and expanding its use of recycled water to cool its data center operations to over 120 locations across the United States by 2030. The scaling of the program expanded on prior efforts to use recycled water for data center cooling at locations in Virginia and California. Amazon said in June that it has expansion efforts underway in Georgia and Mississippi as well.
