# AI's Energy & Water Demands: Sorting Fact from Fiction with Andy Masley

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-cognitive-revolution/ai-s-energy-water-demands-sorting-fact-from-fiction-with-andy-masley
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-cognitive-revolution/ai-s-energy-water-demands-sorting-fact-from-fiction-with-andy-masley.md
Podcast: ["The Cognitive Revolution" | AI Builders, Researchers, and Live Player Analysis](https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-cognitive-revolution)
Published: 2025-12-14T16:11:00+00:00
Episode link: https://www.cognitiverevolution.ai/ai-s-energy-water-demands-sorting-fact-from-fiction-with-andy-masley/
Audio file: https://pdst.fm/e/mgln.ai/e/1113/pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/RINTP2277995999.mp3?updated=1765725228
Processing state: processed
JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-cognitive-revolution/episodes/ai-s-energy-water-demands-sorting-fact-from-fiction-with-andy-masley
Duration seconds: 7434

## Resource

Andy Masley on AI energy and water use unpacks common myths and brings an Effective Altruism lens to the debate. PSA for AI builders: Interested in alignment, governance, or AI safety? Learn more about the MATS Summer 2026 Fellowship and submit your name to be notified when applications open: https://matsprogram.org/s26-tcr. You’ll get memorable heuristics—one ChatGPT query ≈ running a microwave for one second; 10,000 queries ≈ a cross-town car trip, burger, or hot shower—and clear comparisons about data center power, solar land area, and an estimated 80 GW buildout. We also cover local impacts, water trade-offs, uncertainty drivers, and why AI’s global resource footprint is smaller than many fear while noting where caution is still warranted. LINKS: Andy Masley Substack homepage Power Hungry Processing paper PDF Energy Efficiency AI Benchmarks PDF Deep neural network energy paper Gemini Deep Research report ChatGPT 5.1 Pro report Claude Opus 4.5 report Altman “The Gentle Singularity” SemiAnalysis AI datacenter energy dilemma Epoch OpenAI compute spend Dean Ball Out of Thin Air Sponsors: Framer: Framer is the all-in-one tool to design, iterate, and publish stunning websites with powerful AI features. Start creating for free and use code COGNITIVE to get one free month of Framer Pro at https://framer.com/design Agents of Scale: Agents of Scale is a podcast from Zapier CEO Wade Foster, featuring conversations with C-suite leaders who are leading AI transformation. Subscribe to the show wherever you get your podcasts Tasklet: Tasklet is an AI agent that automates your work 24/7; just describe what you want in plain English and it gets the job done. Try it for free and use code COGREV for 50% off your first month at https://tasklet.ai Shopify: Shopify powers millions of bu…

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