AN advert urging people to save water has used AI — which requires huge amounts of the precious resource.
Critics said the £75million -backed campaign also appears to blame customers for shortages instead of water firms.
The “Let’s Save Water” video opens with kids in a classroom watching TV when a cartoon cloud warns the UK’s supply could fall short by five billion litres.
One child is then seen lecturing an adult for running a tap while washing up.
Some viewers slammed the use of , which a Government report said was so water-reliant “it is likely to threaten global and national water security, especially in areas of existing water stress”.
One said instead of blaming us, “why don’t we blame the AI company who animated the cloud?”.
Others hit out at the hypocrisy of water firms, who are subsidising the campaign via regulator .
Political commentator Bruce Hamill said: “They have spent years leaking billions of litres of water a day.
“They want you to feel responsible for a shortage they created.”
Let’s Save Water said AI-assisted tools were used for “less than six seconds of footage”.
Water levels at Fernworthy Reservoir in are so low they have revealed the remains of prehistoric villages.
