For decades, water utilities have been silent service providers - ensuring safe, reliable and essential access to water with little public visibility and engagement. But today’s realities demand more. With climate extremes, aging infrastructure, water quality concerns such as micropollutants, lead and PFAs and resource constraints, public scrutiny is rising, marking this as an important time for utilities to evolve as real community anchors. Moving from custodians of safe, secure operations to critical players in community resilience.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) can help unlock that potential at scale. From predictive analytics to advanced metering and community empowerment, AI is no longer just an emerging tool. Rather, paired with the right expertise and community education, it’s becoming the backbone of how water utilities can cut carbon, make decisions faster and empower and protect communities.
In this last article in our AI for Water series, we explore how water utilities can harness AI to future-proof assets, enhance customer engagement, lower operational costs and redefine their role in society, operating as community anchors and engines for a resilient water future. Water utilities are more than a network of buried assets. They have proven to revitalize communities, to enable growth and smart city developments, and to give pride to the people who live, work, and play in their neighborhoods.
The new wave: Why water utilities are at an important crossroads
A clear takeaway from the recent international SWAN event, held in May 2025 in Berlin, is that water utilities are increasingly being seen as not just operators of critical infrastructure, but as stewards of community health, safety and resilience.
During a panel discussion on data accessibility at the SWAN event, Katrina Flavell, an Innovation Specialist at Yorkshire Water, addressed the relevance of information and knowledge that goes with the data. Data can, for instance, tell us that a pipe is leaking but we also need both information (how the utility responded) and knowledge (how and why this response was chosen) to support the generation of reliable AI solutions. “As we build out more advanced technology to help us manage water systems, it is critical that we incorporate information and knowledge as well as data into these technology systems. AI can help us make decisions faster than ever before, but it is essential that this processing capability is underpinned by human knowledge that informs the responses and insights generated”, she highlights.
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This shift isn’t theoretical. In the US alone, 240,000 water main breaks occur every year, causing two trillion gallons of treated water to be lost. And this figure is consistent globally, with non-revenue water averaging around 30% of the total water provided in many regions.
These challenges impact water quality and access, exposing the system and communities to vulnerabilities: every drop lost to a leak is water that is not available for members of the community. The challenges on timing, budget and infrastructure demand not just incremental, but transformational action.
AI can help utilities with insights and predictive analytics to shift from often reactive and delayed maintenance to proactive operations and integrated intelligence. We are already seeing where this has expanded the boundaries of traditional water management practices - from circular water economy strategies and water security and resilience to reliable infrastructure concepts.
In many places like Netherlands and Houston, extreme weather events have led water utilities to relook at their investment and implementation strategies, considering more sustainable, long-term approaches. In the Netherlands, AI has been deployed to model storm water flows which would show which parts of the community are most vulnerable during a significant storm event. In Houston, digital twins are being used as an advanced technology application that will help the city better understand how their system is performing and where it could be optimized.
Redefining sustainability in water: Resilience, risk and real returns
For water utilities, sustainability has broadened beyond environmental stewardship to ensuring continuity, managing financial risk and staying future-ready in a volatile world.
In this new era, utilities seek to address:
Service continuity during climate shocks or infrastructure failure
Capital and bond market expectations, with ESG linked financing requiring more robust disclosures
Community impact as utilities increasingly serve as local economic anchors for community resilience and employment
This broader, more grounded definition of sustainability, rooted in risk mitigation, economic durability and adaptive capacity are key areas where AI plays a role in helping utilities deliver on their promise.
Water utilities play major, multifaceted roles in communities as service providers, environmental stewards, and economic enablers. The adept use of AI can help them deliver on that complex mission more effectively.
The demand for digital solutions is rising sharply. As highlighted in Bluefield Research’s Global Water Metering Outlook, utilities are now prioritizing versatile, multipurpose solutions that can address operational challenges while enabling smarter planning, regulatory alignment and financial performance. The increasing adoption of technologies such as Smart Meter systems reflects this shift – to improve efficiency and reduce non-revenue water, while integrating with smart city initiatives and freeing up human resource teams to focus on more strategic priorities. These digital investments are no longer viewed as add-ons or nice-to-haves, they are viewed as essential enablers that return value to the organizations in a more complex and uncertain operating environment.
AI is now being seen as a catalyst for efficiency changes within organizations. It is transforming utilities into engines of sustainability, efficiency and responsiveness, while driving social, economic and environmental progress - solidifying their role as pillars of community development.
Machine learning, automation, predictive analytics and digital twin technologies, amongst others, today are central to how utilities can optimize processes, predict infrastructure failures, reduce costs, promote collaboration and allow data-informed decisions – for both utilities and customers alike.
AI for Water: From fragmented to an integrated community anchor
AI-powered systems are currently being deployed to proactively identify leaks and notify customers before significant water loss occurs, analyze customer complaints identifying patterns and enabling time-wise responses from utilities and predict extreme weather events and where to prioritize investment in asset management.
Here are three areas where it is already reshaping the water landscape:
1. Operational efficiency and asset performance
For many utilities, efficiency starts with better visibility. AI can help optimize, accelerate and augment decision-making with real-time insights. In the U.K., for example, Severn Trent Water, serving over eight million customers, faced mounting challenges in managing their extensive portfolio of above and below ground assets. With the adoption of Arcadis’ Enterprise Decision Analytics (EDA) platform, STW was able to transform its capital planning approach: streamlining resource allocation, improving forecasting, and aligning investments with impact. The result? A 15% reduction in maintenance cost, improved customer service delivery and elevating their reputation for operational excellence.
Beyond asset-heavy utilities, similar approaches are also being applied in nature-based planning, where data complexity and long-term value assessment are key.
My team has been using AI and machine learning to support habitat modeling, remote monitoring and automated risk assessments - helping utilities calculate constraints and prioritize where interventions are most effective. This is especially important as nature-based solutions increasingly require clear cost-benefit justification and long-term maintenance planning.
2. Climate risk and resilience
Increasing droughts, flood risks, aging infrastructure and public pressure have placed climate resilience as a front-line priority for water utilities. AI and tools such as Arcadis' Climate Nexus proves indispensable in enabling strategic planning efforts to extend the asset lifecycle, as well as proactive responses, decision-making and cost-benefit analyses for interventions across complex asset portfolios.
Strategic planning efforts in the U.S. and Europe today include climate risk mitigation as a core operational and financial priority. This means preparing for and adapting to withstand extreme events, anticipating system stresses, and protecting long-term service continuity.
Climate adaptation sustainability is emerging in strategic planning efforts as a goal - becoming a high priority for utilities with concerns around climate uncertainty, extreme events and water quality and quantity impacts. The thinking is about how to make infrastructure more resilient, extending its useful life considering the impacts of extreme weather events.
In the U.K., Arcadis is helping utilities and authorities rethink resilience at scale. For instance, our team partnered with the Greater London Authority to develop a proof of concept to optimize Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) implementation across boroughs – aligning water infrastructure upgrades with street works, energy asset upgrades and climate-positive design. Through this, the authority aims to build resilience while minimizing public disruption and maximizing public realm improvements.
It is easier to apply sustainability to new infrastructure – the real challenge lies in upgrading aging systems and assets. AI can help identify vulnerabilities, predict future risks, optimize maintenance schedules and simulate adaptive strategies to prolong asset lifecycle and enhance the resilience.
3. The human element: Customer empowerment and community trust
While AI delivers undeniable gains in operational efficiency, its real value can be seen in cases where it strengthens the relationship between utilities and the communities they serve. That means putting human connection, collaboration and trust at the center of this digital transformation. Between water companies, environmental agencies, local authorities and the community.
To succeed, a starting point is the demystification of AI for the workforce, i.e., helping an understanding from within utilities in AI’s ability to augment, not replace, human roles – as addressed in our previous AI for Water series article.
AI adoption and education are helping clients to develop a healthy balance of trust and skepticism. By enabling real-time feedback and proactive communication, utilities can build trust and improve transparency within all its stakeholders – strengthen people and community connections
That connection extends beyond internal culture. Customers today – shaped by their experiences with energy and telecom providers – increasingly expect real time information, personalized insights and active engagement from their water utilities. AI makes this possible.
With smart meters and data driven platforms, utilities now have the ability to send alerts when abnormal usage patterns may suggest a leak – ensuring early detection, preventing high bills, unnecessary water loss and customer frustration.
AI-powered smart meters can be really powerful with the right communication and can alert customers about leaks or unusual water usage patterns, empowering them to take action and reduce waste. More vulnerable customers can also benefit from AI systems that monitor usage trends and trigger care visits when necessary.
Several U.S. utilities, for example, are already using AI-powered sentiment analysis tools to sort, understand and respond to thousands of customer service requests, creating faster response rates and more informed frontline engagement.
And it doesn’t stop there. As Hugh-Berk Sinclair shares, “The true test, and opportunity, lies in how AI enables collaboration across systems: utilities, local governments and communities. From sharing infrastructure data, coordinating public works or engaging citizens, if used with the right decision making, AI can turn isolated opportunities into cohesive, responsive systems.”
The blueprint to go from data to dialogue
Ultimately, trust isn’t a feature of technology; it’s a result of how it’s used. The path forward is about redefining the role of the utility in society, and how technology and AI can help.
So, what does it take for a utility to evolve into a true community anchor? We explore five building blocks:
Lead with transparency and connection: using AI as a tool – from real-time alerts to open dashboards – to build engagement, understanding and trust with community members.
Embed a human focus into digital strategies: serving real people, not just systems. This means designing tools that are accessible, support the needs and considerations of all community members, and build trust with employees through transparency and training.
Operate as part of a broader ecosystem: working across sectors - energy, transport, public health - using AI to coordinate investments, share data and plan smarter, joined-up infrastructure.
Use data to drive resilience, not just efficiency: using it for predictive maintenance, risk modeling and adaptive planning; helping with the business case for investments that protect communities and extend asset life.
Earn trust through action: and focus on what matters as the end goal: better service, faster response, fewer disruptions. Visibility and delivery are what earn long-term trust.
A look ahead: From possibility to practice
As the challenges facing water utilities grow more complex, so do the opportunities – to lead differently, as partners in resilience.
Our experts at Arcadis have decades of experience working alongside utilities to make that shift real. While AI has in recent years grown as a buzzword, our teams have delivered years of demonstrable work across the world to really bring to fruition its real value. From helping cities like Mesa and London deploy integrated systems, to supporting climate risk modeling and community engagement. We can help you drive transformation at scale.
AI isn’t the ‘future of water utilities’ – it’s the tool that helps them deliver on what communities need today: resilience, trust and smarter decisions at every level. And that need is what will shape the future.
Arcadis initiatives like the AI for Water Innovation Challenge is one way we’re accelerating this journey – identifying breakthroughs and bringing together your real-world challenges with practical solutions and partners to shape what’s next.
AI for Water: A game-changer or a pipe dream?
Paired with human intelligence, AI has the power to tackle many of the water sector’s most pressing problems. But, what are the key building blocks to be considered when it comes to AI and water?
