Look, I’m nursing my third bourbon of the morning – doctor’s orders for reading Bloomberg reports – and trying to wrap my head around how much stuff these AI systems want to gobble up. Remember when being hungry meant hitting the 24-hour diner at 3 AM? Now we’ve got artificial brains demanding more resources than my ex-wives combined.
Bloomberg’s Lynn Doan just dropped a piece that reads like a shopping list written by a megalomaniac robot. And boy, does it want everything. Water, power, chips, real estate – it’s like watching a trust fund kid loose in Vegas with daddy’s credit card.
Let’s break this down while I pour another drink.
First up: power consumption. These data centers are projected to suck up 8% of all electricity by 2030. Eight-fucking-percent. That’s enough juice to power all the neon signs in every dive bar from here to Milwaukee. And what’s really rich? The nuclear power industry – yeah, that same one we’ve been treating like the drunk uncle at Thanksgiving since Three Mile Island – is suddenly everybody’s best friend.
Microsoft’s even trying to resurrect Three Mile Island. Nothing says “trust us with the future” quite like reopening the site of America’s worst nuclear accident. But hey, when you need power for your chatbot, suddenly those pesky meltdown risks don’t seem so bad, right?
Now, about the water situation. These AI systems are thirstier than me on a Sunday morning. We’re looking at 500 million gallons of water daily by 2030. And get this – every time you have a nice little chat with ChatGPT, it drinks a 16-ounce bottle of water. The damn thing’s more hydrated than most Americans.
takes long pull from bourbon
But here’s where it gets really interesting. All this fancy AI stuff? It’s basically becoming the VIP room of the digital world. Rich folks get the premium models, while the rest of us get the AI equivalent of warm beer and stale peanuts. And most of the data these systems learn from? It’s all English-speaking, European-heritage stuff. Because apparently, AI needs to learn how to speak like a trust fund baby before it learns anything else.
The hardware situation isn’t any better. China’s hoarding chips and rare earth metals like they’re limited edition bourbon bottles. They’ve banned exports of gallium and germanium – and if you can pronounce those correctly after three drinks, you’re doing better than me.
And then there’s the human element. Companies are scrambling for talent like it’s last call at the only bar in town. They seem to think they can turn warehouse workers into data scientists overnight. News flash: coding isn’t like learning to pour a perfect pint.
lights cigarette
The real kicker in all this? Nobody seems to be asking if we actually need all this AI horsepower. We’re building digital McMansions while half the world’s still trying to get decent internet. It’s like installing a high-end wine cellar when your roof’s leaking.
Look, I’m not saying AI is bad. Hell, it’s probably writing better poetry than I did during my “artistic phase” in the 90s. But maybe – just maybe – we should think about the bar tab before we order another round of digital shots for everyone.
Until next time, I’ll be here, drinking bourbon and watching the machines get thirstier than I am.
Stay human, Henry
P.S. If you need me, I’ll be stockpiling water. Not for the AI – for making ice cubes for my whiskey. Priorities, people.
Source: We’ll Need To Anticipate AI Using A Lot Of Resources In Tomorrow’s World