OpenAI’s Altman Rejects ChatGPT Energy Criticism, Says AI May Be More Efficient Than Humans

Generative AI has spread rapidly since OpenAI launched ChatGPT in November 2022, putting data-center electricity use and cooling water consumption at the center of an environmental debate. Large models consume energy not only during training but also through continuous computation for everyday inference. Accurately measuring the resource cost of each query is critical to determining whether AI expansion can be reconciled with energy supplies and emissions reductions.

On February 20, 2026, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman rejected a claim that each ChatGPT query consumes 17 gallons of water during an interview with The Indian Express on the sidelines of the India AI Impact Summit in New Delhi. Comparing AI with the roughly 20 years of growth and food consumption required for humans to develop intelligence, he argued that the energy efficiency of a single AI inference may already match or exceed that of a human. He acknowledged, however, that total electricity consumption remains the real challenge.