Endeavor and Trevi Systems are partnering to repurpose waste heat from AI data centers to produce freshwater. The companies plan to deploy a pilot system at an Endeavor facility that utilizes a forward osmosis process to extract water from groundwater sources.
The technology operates by drawing water through a membrane using a specialized solution, which is then regenerated at temperatures between 60 and 80 degrees Celsius using server heat. Developers estimate the system can generate up to 750,000 liters of water per day for every megawatt of computing power, or 31 liters per kilowatt-hour consumed.
The system aims to address brine waste by employing a zero-liquid discharge approach that converts brine into solid salts. According to the companies, this method could reduce energy consumption for waste processing by 85 percent compared to traditional desalination and crystallization units.
While the International Energy Agency reports that data centers consumed 415 TWh of electricity in 2024 with projections reaching 945 TWh by 2030, the practical viability of using this heat for large-scale water production remains to be proven.
