Wolf&Grayson EditorialWorld leaders are navigating a moment of exceptional change. The convergence of AI, water technology, and sustainability is reshaping how environmental challenges are understood and solved, opening pathways that were once too complex, too slow, or too costly to address.
AI can now process real-time data from water systems to detect contamination before it spreads, accelerating decision-making and strengthening public health protections. Consider recent breakthroughs at MIT, where an ultrafast PFAS sensor can identify harmful contaminants at unprecedented speed. Advanced treatment technologies are also evolving, with AI transforming water treatment and enabling resource recovery.
At the same time, regulation is shifting as policymakers rethink standards to keep pace with tools that enable earlier detection and more precise treatment. Sustainability frameworks and utility-level innovation efforts, including initiatives such as the AI Adoption Framework for Water and Wastewater Utilities, are pushing companies to integrate these technologies into long-term planning rather than treating them as optional add-ons.
These shifts are creating a pivotal moment where environmental protection aligns with business incentives, enabling leaders to build solutions that are both resilient and profitable. “There is so much exponential change underway that technologies, customer needs, and environmental demands are all evolving at once,” says Pamela Lynch, President of Cornelsen Inc; Cornelsen is leading technology and innovation setting new standards for a healthier world.
This reality makes the challenge twofold: solving immediate problems while anticipating a future that is shifting too quickly to fully map. Product technology cycles are accelerating, and data availability is transforming the speed of innovation. Lynch notes that some solutions companies will need one or two years from now may be shaped by variables that do not yet exist. When it comes to PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) person-made chemicals, known for their water and chemical resistant properties, after decades of scientific scrutiny and real-world testing, some PFAS treatment solutions are now reaching full commercial application and broad global deployment.
It is an environment that rewards leaders who look ahead, ask hard bold questions, keep customers at the center, and explore long-range scenarios, even as the roadmaps take shape.
Why the Water Conversation Matters
The intersection of AI and water technology has placed renewed attention on global water infrastructure, where the demands of modern computing collide with longstanding challenges around clean, reliable access to water. AI-driven systems now require substantial volumes of water for cooling, even as many regions continue to face scarcity and contamination. “If we are not actually tackling some of the water challenges now, they are only going to get worse,” says Lynch.
Water quality pressures are rising, with pollutants such as PFAS and 1,4-dioxane complicating treatment efforts. Addressing these issues increasingly depends on coordination among technology providers, industry, governments, and local communities — a shift toward shared responsibility rather than isolated action. “What are we doing between technology providers, large companies, governments, and communities to work together to solve the larger water challenges?” asks Lynch.
Water treatment must be embedded into large-scale infrastructure and technology planning from the outset, not treated as an afterthought. PFAS, for example, remain hazardous in the environment, yet their unique properties make them valuable in certain industrial applications when purified. Identifying pathways to reclaim and repurpose materials like these reflects a more circular, collaborative approach to resource management.
Data, Transparency, and the Next Industry Shift
For Lynch, who began her career in General Electric’s Operations Management Leadership Program and later held leadership roles across clean energy and manufacturing, one of the most significant near-term shifts will come from data. Massive streams of real-time information will reshape how companies understand water, waste, and resource flows.
“Because there’s so much more data, we can use that to make better business decisions,” she says. Real-time monitoring enables companies to isolate contamination issues quickly and avoid costly blanket solutions. This shift is already reshaping operating models and will only accelerate.
Consumers are also part of the data equation. Lynch believes that when environmental information is readily available and the alternatives are equally convenient, people tend to choose the more sustainable option. “When time and cost are comparable, selecting the option with the least environmental impact is simply good decision-making,” she says.
How Businesses Can Drive Meaningful Impact
Lynch has spent more than two decades working across clean energy, advanced manufacturing, and water technology, including leadership roles at Aclarity, TPI Composites, A123 Systems, and Ogin Energy. From these experiences, she outlines several practical actions companies can take to improve sustainability through AI and advanced water technologies.
- Track water like any other critical resource. Many organizations include carbon data, or energy usage, in sustainability reports, but water is often overlooked. Establishing baselines makes improvement possible.
- Understand waste streams and circular opportunities. Lynch emphasizes that companies should look beyond regulation. Minerals, metals, or even PFAS can sometimes be reclaimed or sold into industrial markets, creating a circular loop with business benefits.
- Design closed-loop systems. Drawing from past experience in heat recovery projects, she encourages leaders to map where excess resources exist and where demand lies. Connecting the two reduces waste and generates meaningful savings.
Preparing for an Uncertain Future
New technologies continue to open doors for more effective waste treatment, enabling companies to handle higher‑contaminant streams while reducing environmental burdens on surrounding communities. “Companies are able to bring in higher‑revenue waste streams and actually treat more waste,” she says, pointing to the kinds of practical gains that innovation can unlock.
Looking ahead, Lynch urges leaders to think beyond immediate pressures and make deliberate space for the bigger, more challenging questions that shape long-term strategy. “Taking the time to ask the big, hard questions opens the door to deeper insights and stronger opportunities,” she says.
This is a moment that demands both listening and action. With technology and environmental pressures accelerating in tandem, waiting for perfect clarity is neither realistic nor strategic. Leaders who remain focused only on short-term targets risk overlooking the breakthroughs happening around them.
To explore more of Lynch’s work and insights, connect with her on LinkedIn, through Cornelsen, or visit her website.
In the photo above Lynch is speaking at the Junior League of Boston Charity Gala at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
