"Shark Tank" investor Kevin O'Leary thinks critics attacking data centers over water use are aiming at the wrong target. Speaking on the "Money Rehab" podcast in July, O'Leary questioned the claims outright. "So, where did this claim come from that data centers use up so much water that it's like the entire water table of a state is going to go down 10 feet? All these ridiculous claims," he said. Then he brought golf into it. "Do you know what uses more water than many data centers? A golf course. Why aren't we shutting all the golf courses down?" His argument is that older comparisons no longer hold. "The modern-day data center today does not use water like the ones from 20 years ago," he said. Older facilities relied more heavily on evaporative cooling, while newer systems use closed loops. "Like your car radiator. You use the same water to cool the chips. So you're not using more water than that." He also noted that turbines once dependent on water can now be air-cooled, with batteries, solar and wind in the power mix. O'Leary framed the business itself as property. "Data center development is actually real estate. That's what it is," he said, comparing it to the climate-controlled storage facilities he once built and leased for pharmaceutical companies. His broader position was blunt. "We need more power. Period. The end."