Generative AI's Environmental Impact

MIT News examines why generative AI is so resource-intensive, citing estimates that North American data center power requirements rose from 2,688 megawatts at the end of 2022 to 5,341 megawatts at the end of 2023, and that a ChatGPT query consumes about five times more electricity than a simple web search. The article also covers water used for cooling, hardware manufacturing impacts, and the MIT researchers' call for a comprehensive assessment of generative AI's environmental and societal costs.