Altman: 38,000 ChatGPT Queries Use Less Water Than One California Almond

On September 3, Sam Altman responded on the Sources Podcast (hosted by Alex Heath) to concerns over AI data center water use, claiming that 38,000 ChatGPT queries consume roughly as much water as producing one California almond, and that data centers use no more water than an office building. The comparison, reported by Tom's Hardware, spread widely and was quickly turned into memes.

Confirmed

• Altman explicitly gave the "38,000 queries ≈ one California almond" comparison to counter AI water-use criticism, per Tom's Hardware.
• He acknowledged data centers once used evaporative cooling but said that was abandoned "a long time ago" in modern hyperscale facilities.
• Polymarket cited an extended calculation: the "waste water" for one 16-oz (about 454 g) bag of almonds could support 100 ChatGPT queries per day for over 385 years.
• The claim spread widely: @iamrobotbear argued that anti-AI water-waste critics are brainwashed; @beffjezos mocked the contradiction between almond-milk drinkers and anti-AI stances; others joked about "eating one almond per 38,000 queries" or "each almond costs 38,000 prompts."

Unconfirmed

• The accuracy and methodology of the figure (query types, data center differences, almond farming water accounting) are not detailed in the posts, and the per-query water figure follows Altman's earlier disclosure without independent verification.

Why it matters

• With data center water use drawing scrutiny as AI scales, this is a direct top-level OpenAI response that could shape public and regulatory framing of the debate.
• Translating abstract resource use into an everyday agricultural reference implies agricultural water use dwarfs common perception; its rapid memification suggests the framing's persuasiveness remains contested.

2026-09-03 ~ 2026-09-05 · 11 related posts

• Sam Altman: One California Almond Uses More Water Than 38,000 ChatGPT Queries — Polymarket · 2026-09-03
• [source] Sam Altman: 38,000 ChatGPT queries use about as much water as one California almond — GlenBradley · 2026-09-03
• [source] One bag of almonds' 'waste water' could power 100 ChatGPT queries a day for 385 years — Polymarket · 2026-09-03
• [source] Altman: 38,000 ChatGPT queries use as much water as producing one almond — ControlCAD · 2026-09-05

7 near-duplicate retellings: iamrobotbear · gaganghotra_ · danshipper · beffjezos · tanduyha · abhishekcode42 · rohanpaul_ai