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Microsoft pledged to save water. In the AI era, It expects water use to soar.

Water distribution infrastructure at a Microsoft data center in El Mirage, Ariz., Jan. 14, 2026. Driven by the artificial intelligence frenzy, Microsoft is internally projecting that water use at its data centers will more than double by 2030 from 2020, including in places that face shortages. (Rebecca Noble/The New York Times)
Water distribution infrastructure at a Microsoft data center in El Mirage, Ariz., Jan. 14, 2026. Driven by the artificial intelligence frenzy, Microsoft is internally projecting that water use at its data centers will more than double by 2030 from 2020, including in places that face shortages. (Rebecca Noble/The New York Times) Water distribution infrastructure at a Microsoft data center in El Mirage, Ariz., Jan. 14, 2026. Driven by the artificial intelligence frenzy, Microsoft is internally projecting that water use at its data centers will more than double by 2030 from 2020, including in places that face shortages. (Rebecca Noble/The New York Times)

By Adam Satariano, Paul Mozur and Karen Weise / New York Times News Service 10 min read

In 2020, Brad Smith, Microsoft’s president, outlined an ambitious plan to conserve water at the company’s growing fleet of data centers that power the internet. He pledged to cut use, support wetland restoration projects and deploy new water-saving technologies.

“Water is essential to life,” Smith said.

Then came the artificial intelligence boom, which caused a construction spree for even more data centers to develop and deploy the technology. Now Microsoft is privately projecting its water use will surge.

By just how much is a moving target.

Internal forecasts that Microsoft made last year, which were obtained by The New York Times, show the company expected its annual water needs for roughly 100 data center complexes worldwide to more than triple this decade to 28 billion liters in 2030. That compares with 7.9 billion liters in 2020 and 10.4 billion liters in 2024.