The increasing use of generative AI will generate more e-waste

Who would have thought!!!

As our use of artificial intelligence (AI) increases exponentially, researchers and scientists are beginning to sound the alarm about the potential environmental impacts of AI.

According to a recent article published on the website of Scientific American Scientists already estimate that the projected global deployment of AI could use as much electricity as the entire Netherlands by 2027. In addition, a separate study was published in Nature informatics predicts that generative AI applications could generate between 1.2 and 5 million tons of e-waste worldwide by 2030.

The Scientific American The article details some of the serious consequences associated with the use of generative AI. For example, creating two separate images using generative AI technology can use as much energy as charging a smartphone. And a single exchange using ChatGPT can raise the temperature of the physical server generating the exchange to the point where it takes the equivalent of a bottle of water to bring the temperature back to normal levels.

In order to reduce the potential environmental impact associated with the use of AI, the article highlights some possible solutions that can help minimize the environmental impact of using AI. The list includes more efficient design of chips and AI algorithms, more regular maintenance and updating of data servers, and finding more ways to refurbish or reuse aging hardware components. Researchers estimate that implementing these and other strategies could reduce AI-related e-waste by up to 86%.

The Scientific American The article on the possible environmental consequences of using AI is available at https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/generative-ai-could-generate-millions-more-tons-of-e-waste-by-2030/ .

The study published in Nature informatics referenced in the Scientific American The article is available at https://www.nature.com/articles/s43588-024-00726-0.