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UN report: AI's hidden environmental toll includes massive energy, water use

By PulseAugur Editorial · [1 sources] ·

A new UN report highlights the significant environmental impact of AI, estimating that data centers consumed 448 TWh of electricity last year, comparable to France's energy usage. The report also warns of substantial water consumption, land use, and a projected 2.5 million tonnes of e-waste annually by 2030. Researchers suggest that simple actions, like avoiding polite phrases with chatbots, could yield energy savings equivalent to powering over 760,000 sub-Saharan African residents. AI

IMPACT Highlights the substantial, often overlooked, environmental costs of AI, prompting a need for sustainable practices in its development and deployment.

RANK_REASON The cluster discusses findings from a UN academic arm's report on the environmental impact of AI, which falls under research. [lever_c_demoted from research: ic=1 ai=0.7]

Read on SCMP — Tech →

AI-generated summary · Google Gemini · from 1 sources. How we write summaries →

UN report: AI's hidden environmental toll includes massive energy, water use

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The cluster discusses findings from a UN academic arm's report on the environmental impact of AI, which falls under research. [lever_c_demoted from research: ic=1 ai=0.7]
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COVERAGE [1]

  1. SCMP — Tech TIER_1 English(EN) · Coco Feng ·

    Want to save the planet? Stop being so polite to AI chatbots

    Skipping pleasantries like “please” and “thank you” when talking to chatbots could save enough energy to power the annual needs of 760,000 residents in sub-Saharan Africa, highlighting the massive but often hidden environmental toll of artificial intelligence, according to a new …

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