Amazon founder Jeff Bezos says human water consumption is limiting AI's potential

Jeff Bezos

• Jeff Bezos: AI will add jobs and cause labor shortages
• He urges AI infrastructure despite environmental concerns
• Bezos imagines lasting human colonies on the Moon and beyond

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Amazon founder Jeff Bezos believes artificial intelligence will create more jobs rather than eliminate them, arguing that the technology will accelerate innovation and eventually lead to a shortage of workers instead of mass unemployment.

Speaking at the VivaTech 2026 conference in Paris, Bezos entered the ongoing debate over AI's impact on employment and said the technology would expand human creativity by making it easier to identify and solve new problems.

“AI is going to create a labour shortage because it’s going to make it possible for people to identify more problems,” Bezos said during a session moderated by former NASA astronaut Mike Massimino. Blue Origin chief executive Dave Limp also participated in the discussion.

Bezos pointed to his latest venture, Prometheus, an artificial intelligence startup that aims to build what he described as an "artificial general engineer." According to him, such technologies could speed up the innovation cycle and unlock ideas that were previously impossible to pursue.

“If we can accelerate the dream-build loop, all of the ideas will then become possible. And then we end up being limited not by our capabilities but by our imaginations,” he said.

The billionaire also addressed concerns over the environmental cost of AI, particularly the large amounts of water and energy required by data centres.

Arguing that society must take a long-term view, Bezos said certain resources may need to be prioritised for AI infrastructure if the technology is to fulfil its potential.

“Biological limits are real, but digital potential is infinite. If we starve our data infrastructure of cooling resources just to sustain baseline human comfort, we are actively delaying the birth of a super-intelligence that could solve all of our resource problems in the first place,” he said.

The remarks have reignited debates over the environmental impact of AI and the trade-offs associated with the rapid expansion of data centres.

Beyond artificial intelligence, Bezos also shared his long-term vision for space exploration. He said the Moon would serve as the first step toward permanent human settlements beyond Earth.

“We’re going to the Moon to stay, not just to visit,” Bezos said, arguing that the Moon's resources and lower launch costs could make it a key hub for future space missions.

He added that lunar exploration would eventually pave the way for settlements on Mars and other destinations, describing space expansion as essential for balancing economic growth with environmental preservation on Earth.