CUAHSI LTAW: The Little-Known Tale of the Thirsty Chips

The Little-Known Tale of the Thirsty Chips documentary was created with the sole purpose of education, creating awareness, and starting a well-informed conversation about water usage in the semiconductor industry. It is the winning pitch of the Lets Talk About Water (LTAW) Grant 2023 and is funded by the Consortium of Universities for Advancement of Hydrologic Sciences Inc. (CUAHSI). This documentary was created by three graduate students, Ayobami Oluwadunsin Oladapo, Srilani Wickramasinghe, and Shivika Aggrawal.

Given the current atmosphere where chips and AI are making headlines every day, there is already much ongoing discussion about the challenges for resource acquisition (skilled-labor, rare earth metals, etc.) in these industries. Water, which is a critical resource for the sustenance of these high-tech industries, rarely made it to the discussion table. Recognizing this gap, this documentary aims to bring the water story to the forefront, reaching a wider audience, beyond the scientific academic audience, and help educate and raise awareness about water use in the semiconductor industry.

The documentary addresses crucial questions, such as: Why is the recent semiconductor boom important to the United States? Are people aware of water usage in the semiconductor industry/chip manufacturing? Is the current planning & policy framework related to the chips-water scenario sufficient? What can be done to improve? How can it be done? What are the current water-related best practices within the chip industry? What is the way forward & what role can research & innovation play in this regard? Is it the right time to start this dialogue about water use in the semiconductor industry?

The interview-driven documentary offers a comprehensive narrative that stimulates critical evaluation through a multidisciplinary lens, including insights from hydrogeologists, semiconductor experts, students, and water utility professionals. This multidisciplinary engagement approach provided a comprehensive and nuanced view of the topic, thus encouraging critical thinking and reflection among the audience based on the evidence presented. The goal of the documentary is to encourage water-efficient chip innovation and emphasize the role of chip R&D in this regard while also advocating for informed resource planning. With “The Little-Known Tale of Thirsty Chips”, we aspire to bring water as a resource to the table where discussions about improving resource efficiency in the semiconductor industry take place.