Surging use of AI has led to a frenzy of construction activity to build new data centres, particularly in the U.S. Estimates put the total number of these facilities in operation worldwide this year at 6,111, with upwards of 2,000 more set to come online by 2030. There has been a lot of focus on the implications for power grids, but less on the toll this unbridled growth will take on a commodity that is in even shorter supply: fresh water. … Periods of prolonged drought, an over-allocation of water supplies from the Colorado River, as well as dwindling groundwater resources make Phoenix a “severely water-stressed region”, according to the Ceres report. If all the data centres now planned come online, the city will experience a 32% increase in annual water stress.