Snapshot 6:Wed, Aug 13, 2025 8:39:35 PM GMT last edited by Nick

UK Agencies Urge Residents to Delete Emails and Photos to Save Water

Published AUG 13

story

Above: Foxton Locks closed to through-boats as drought conditions impact the Grand Union Canal on Aug. 13, 2025. Image copyright: Joe Giddens/PA Images/Getty Images

The Spin

Data centers consume massive amounts of water for cooling, and every small action adds up when millions participate. During a time of severe climate stress, it's dystopian that government agencies in the U.K. must tell residents to take steps to lessen the burden on behemoth AI data facilities.

Medium

Telling people to delete emails is misguided theater that distracts from real solutions. Once data is stored, stored emails and photos generate minimal heat. Given that the U.K. has committed to turbocharging growth through AI, this type of messaging is unhelpful and misguided.

Tom's Hardware

Metaculus Prediction

There's an 80% chance that before 2032, we will see an event precipitated by an AI malfunction that causes at least 100 deaths and/or at least $1 billion in 2021 U.S. dollars in economic damage, according to the Metaculus prediction community.