STRAIGHT ANSWER
How much water do data centers use worldwide?
The IEA models roughly 560 billion liters of annual water consumption by data centers today, rising to about 1.2 trillion liters by 2030. In its 2023 breakdown, about two-thirds came from electricity supply, about one-quarter from on-site cooling, and the remainder from chip manufacturing.
The context
This is a global model with its own system boundary and assumptions, so it is not directly comparable with Berkeley Lab's U.S. figures. The IEA also notes that historical data-center electricity is itself estimated rather than directly measured, which carries into the water estimate.
What this answer does not say
- That the 2030 figure is a forecast of what will happen; it is a scenario.
- That this can be added to or compared directly with the LBNL U.S. numbers.
- That AI is the whole footprint.