Sam Altman pushed back against viral claims about AI’s environmental footprint during an appearance at an event hosted by The Indian Express. Addressing concerns that tools like ChatGPT consume excessive amounts of water per query, Altman called such figures “totally fake” and said they have “no connection to reality.” He noted that water-intensive evaporative cooling was once used in data centers, but is no longer standard practice in many facilities.

Altman also rejected comparisons suggesting a single ChatGPT query uses the equivalent of multiple smartphone battery charges. While acknowledging broader environmental concerns, he emphasized that per-query energy consumption is often exaggerated online. Instead, he argued that discussions should focus on overall system efficiency and the evolution of data center infrastructure rather than viral statistics.