Is Your AI Adding to Your Carbon Footprint?
AI is transforming industries, but itโs important to remember the hidden cost: ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐. With data centres powering AI and cloud computing, itโs estimated that AI contributes to around 2% of global emissions, comparable to the aviation industry (IEA, 2022; Gartner 2023).
So, how can companies ensure their AI efforts are sustainable while driving innovation and efficiency?
Optimise Data Centers for Sustainable AI
AI consumes significant energy, but businesses can cut emissions by using energy-efficient data centres. For example, Google runs its data centres on 100% renewable energy, reducing its environmental footprint (Google, 2024; WEF, 2023).
๐๐ฌ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐๐๐ญ๐ ๐๐๐ง๐ญ๐๐ซ ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ญ ๐จ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ข๐ง๐๐๐ข๐ฅ๐ข๐ญ๐ฒ ๐ฌ๐จ๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง?
Leverage AI for Resource Efficiency
AI isnโt just a consumer of energyโit can help reduce it. By optimizing energy use, companies can cut consumption by up to 10% (BCG, 2023). Google DeepMind used AI to reduce data centre cooling energy by 40% (DeepMind, 2024).
๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐๐ซ๐ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ฏ๐ ๐๐๐๐ข๐๐ข๐๐ง๐๐ฒ?
Green Algorithms: Making AI More Sustainable
Not all AI algorithms are created equal. Efficient algorithms can cut computation and reduce energy demand, helping companies minimize their carbon footprint (MIT, 2023; BCG, 2023).
๐๐ฌ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐๐ ๐ซ๐ฎ๐ง๐ง๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ฌ ๐๐๐๐ข๐๐ข๐๐ง๐ญ๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐๐ฌ ๐ฉ๐จ๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ข๐๐ฅ๐?
Cloud Sustainability: Scaling AI Responsibly
Cloud platforms like AWS and Microsoft Azure allow businesses to scale AI while measuring and reducing carbon footprints. These tools make AI operations more scalable and sustainable (AWS, 2024; Microsoft, 2024).
๐๐ซ๐ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ข๐ง๐๐๐ข๐ฅ๐ข๐ญ๐ฒ ๐ข๐ง ๐ฆ๐ข๐ง๐?
AI-Powered Sustainability Across Operations
AI can do more than optimize itselfโit can enhance energy efficiency across operations. Siemens uses AI to reduce energy consumption and improve equipment efficiency (Siemens, 2024; WEF, 2024).
