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‘An incredibly powerful tool’: Can AI solve its own energy problem?

Amber Rolt, 10 April 2025

New IEA study explores how AI is set to drive huge electricity demand while
at the same time offering potential to unlock ‘significant opportunities’
in energy improvements and emissions reductions.

When BusinessGreen asked
‘how bad is AI for the environment?’, ChatGPT had plenty to say. The
Artificial Intelligence (AI) tool patiently responded that training large
language models such as itself are “extremely energy intensive”, explaining
that they use millions of kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity, consume more
than 700,000 litres of water for cooling methods, and that each query has a
carbon footprint of up to 10 grams of CO2. “Because these tools are used
millions of times a day, it adds up,” ChatGPT added.

So there you have it,
straight from the horse’s mouth: AI’s impact on the environment and energy
systems is immense. And, according to a special new report from the
International Energy Agency (IEA) dedicated to the subject today, that
impact is set for rapid growth in the coming years. So much so, in fact,
that it warns AI holds potential to “transform the energy sector” over the
next decade.

Still, precisely what that transformation will look like is up
for debate. On the positive side, the report suggests AI can help energy
companies improve efficiency, develop technologies, and could contribute to
emissions reductions. But will these promised efficiencies and
technological improvements be enough to offset the huge surge in energy
demand needed to feed the rapidly growing numbers of data centres that AI
relies on?

Business Green 10th April 2025
https://www.businessgreen.com/news/4412130/incredibly-powerful-tool-ai-solve-energy

April 13, 2025 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | ENERGY