Dillon Zhang
As technology advances, Artificial intelligence (AI) has grown to become a part of people’s everyday life. For example,there are AI chatbots such as ChatGPT or Claude that have proven to be incredibly convenient in day to day life. What people rarely consider or even notice is the environmental cost of such convenience. The use of AI tools requires lots of powerful computers in data centers to process the incredible amount of information, every time a client uses the AI. These facilities and computers require an enormous amount of power to operate the numerous servers. Not only does it cost energy to power the computers, it also requires resources such as water and energy to cool the systems down. This prevents the equipment from overheating. The growing and popularizing of AI tools are causing an unsung problem about the environment among people.
The training of AI models is particularly intensive on energy use. Before an AI model can provide answers for users or recognize images, they go through massive datasets over weeks or even months with high performance machines. The electricity power that powers these machines for long periods of time often comes from fossil fuels which can increase greenhouse gas emissions, further worsening the climate change issue.
Despite causing huge environmental challenges, AI could also potentially help with the protection of our environment. The World Wildlife Fund starts to use AI to track species and monitor wildlife populations. AI is also starting to be used to predict natural disasters, improve renewable energy systems, and reduce food waste which is done by improving the efficiency of supply chains. In many cases as the ones listed, AI can be contributing to solving environment issues that would be otherwise difficult for us to address. Whether or not AI becomes an environmental concern depends on how it is used and if it is developed responsibly. There are technology companies that are investing in renewable energy and more energy efficient systems that make AI less environmentally demanding. There are notable efforts in reducing the environmental footprints. Like many new technologies, AI is neither completely good nor bad for the environment. It comes down to how companies use them and how the users can support the environmental sustainability of AI. With the right choices, we can ensure that AI becomes a tool that benefits human society and the climate.
