Planet Cents, Inc.’s Post

Google's spike in greenhouse gas emissions due to AI energy demands paints a troubling picture for tech's environmental impact. The 48% rise in emissions over five years is a stark reminder of the hidden costs of our digital advances. AI's voracious appetite for computing power means more energy-hungry data centers, straining efforts to meet climate goals. Despite initiatives like renewable energy investments and efficient infrastructure, Google's struggle underscores the broader issue: tech progress is outpacing sustainable solutions. The industry’s environmental footprint can't be ignored. Will breakthroughs like nuclear fusion come in time to balance AI's benefits with its ecological toll? #TechVsClimate #AIImpact #AdditionalInsights

Greenhouse gas emissions are surging due to increased demand from #artificialintelligence . It's worth remembering this when playing about with #chapgpt and #gemini , every conversation you have with tools like this cost energy, I don't think we always appreciate this 🤔. Interesting to hear how #google has reduced greenhouse gas emissions in some regions, yet they are still surged overall, so for those regions they haven't managed to reduce must be using an incredible amount of non renewable energy 😦.

Google's greenhouse gas emissions have surged, as revealed in its latest environmental report, highlighting the challenge of meeting its climate goals amid a focus on AI. The company aims to halve its emissions by 2030 from a 2019 baseline, but emissions have increased by 48% since then. In the past year alone, Google emitted 14.3 million metric tons of CO2, a 13% rise from the previous year, comparable to the annual emissions of 38 gas-fired power plants. The rise in emissions is primarily due to energy use in data centers and supply chain activities, with data centers, especially those used for AI, being particularly energy-intensive. In 2023, electricity consumption from data centers added nearly a million metric tons of CO2 to Google's carbon footprint, marking the largest source of the company's additional emissions. As Google integrates AI into its products, the company acknowledges the challenge of reducing emissions due to increased energy demands and related infrastructure investments. Data center electricity consumption alone grew by 17% in 2023, a trend expected to continue. Google's data centers accounted for up to 10% of global data center electricity consumption in 2023. To address its environmental impact, Google is working to make its AI models, hardware, and data centers more energy-efficient and aims to use carbon-free energy around the clock on all power grids it connects to by 2030. Globally, data centers use about 1% of the world's electricity, but the AI industry's growth could increase this tenfold by 2026, according to the International Energy Agency. This has raised concerns in the US, where the majority of data centers are located, about the potential for AI to strain power grids and extend the use of coal and gas plants. Google is not alone in facing these challenges. Microsoft's greenhouse gas emissions were 30% higher in its 2023 fiscal year compared to 2020.

Google’s dilemma: AI expansion vs achieving climate goals Google is currently grappling with a major dilemma: finding a way to maintain its impressive progress in AI technology while also staying true to its goal of minimising carbon emissions. In its 2024 Environmental Report, Google discloses a concerning trend: a staggering 50% surge in emissions over the past five years. This surge can be attributed mainly to the heightened energy requirements of its AI-powered data centres. This alarming surge threatens to derail Google’s ambitious climate goals and underscores a growing conflict between technological progress and environmental sustainability. The report, reflecting Google’s progress toward meeting its environmental goals last year, shows that the company’s total greenhouse gas emissions increased from 9.7 million metric tons of CO2 equivalent in 2019 to 14.3 million metric tons in 2023. This trend poses a significant challenge to Google’s sustainability objectives. The paradox here is striking: the technologies that promise to revolutionise industries, enhance efficiencies, and drive innovation also contribute to an escalating environmental crisis. Google’s case is not unique. Microsoft and Amazon also grapple with the dual pressures of advancing AI and reducing their environmental impact.  To reconcile its AI ambitions with its climate goals, Google admits that it must intensify its efforts in several areas.  First, there needs to be a greater emphasis on developing more energy-efficient AI models. Advances in AI chip design, such as Google’s Tensor Processing Units (TPUs), are a step in the right direction. Still, more must be done to optimise AI algorithms’ energy efficiency. Research into low-power AI and quantum computing could provide breakthroughs in this regard. Second, Google should continue to invest heavily in renewable energy sources. While the company has made significant strides in purchasing renewable energy, achieving a 24/7 carbon-free energy supply remains a formidable challenge. The International Energy Agency estimates that data centres’ total electricity consumption could double from 2022 levels to 1,000TWh (terawatt hours) in 2026, approximately Japan’s level of electricity demand. Calculations by research firm SemiAnalysis reckon that AI will result in data centres using 4.5% of global energy generation by 2030. In May, Microsoft Corp. announced that its carbon emissions have increased by 30% since 2020 as the business increased its investment in AI. The rise made the company’s ambition of achieving net-zero emissions by 2030 considerably more complicated than when it announced its carbon-negative goal. In conclusion, most tech giants’ ambitious AI-driven future is at odds with their environmental goals. This presents a formidable challenge that requires innovative solutions and unwavering commitment. Google and Microsoft’s recent environmental report provides a sobering reminder of the stakes.   D.Kaur, AINEWS

Google is launching new sustainability APIs for developers related to solar potential, air quality, and pollen levels. * The Solar API builds on estimate solar energy potential for homes, using AI to analyze roof angles, shading, and weather data (320 million buildings across 40 countries). * The Air Quality API expands Google's existing air quality layer, incorporating real-time data on pollutants from various sources like government monitors and satellites. * The Pollen API tracks seasonal pollen levels and allergens across 65 countries, using local weather and wind patterns. https://lnkd.in/g_si3rxz

Today we released our @Google's 2024 Environmental Report, highlighting our efforts to leverage AI for climate action and to operate our business sustainably. This year's report showcases significant progress: 7 consecutive years of a 100% renewable energy match, contracts signed for 4 GW of clean energy, 10 grid regions achieved at least 90% carbon-free energy. The report also acknowledges the challenges ahead, including the growing energy demands of AI and the need for systemic change to decarbonise our operations and value chain. We're committed to addressing these challenges head-on, through continued investment in carbon-free energy, responsibly managing AI’s environmental impact, and partnering across industries, organisations, and governments. We’re committed to collaboration and playing our part, every step of the way. Read the full report to learn more about our progress, challenges, and strategy for a more sustainable future: https://lnkd.in/e5s7SaYW  #GoogleSustainability #SustainabilityReport

“It’s surely our responsibility to do everything within our power to create a planet that provides a home not just for us but for all life on Earth.” — David Attenborough "AI Energy Demand Drives Google’s Emissions Up 48% in Five Years Google’s goal of lowering its carbon footprint is in trouble as the technology company’s energy consumption has increased due to the amount of power needed for artificial intelligence (AI) data centers. Read More Related: AI Tech Could Require as Much Electricity as a Small Nation, Study Finds" https://lnkd.in/eNW6vCFW "By: Cristen Hemingway Jaynes Published: July 3, 2024 Edited by Chris McDermott" #energyconsumptionincreasedemissions #AIGoogle #EarthIsFinite ! "The Supreme Court’s Overturning of the Chevron Doctrine Could Impair Environmental and Climate Regulations The Supreme Court of the United States has overturned a 40-year ruling — Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council — that instructed lower courts to give deference to federal agencies when federal laws are seen as ambiguous. The decision means agencies will have a harder time regulating the environment, workplace safety, public health and other major issues. Read More Related: Supreme Court Blocks EPA’s ‘Good Neighbor’ Rule Limiting Air Pollution Across State Lines" "By: Cristen Hemingway Jaynes Published: July 2, 2024 Edited by Chris McDermott" https://lnkd.in/eB7buKvD #healthsafetytoppriority #allourresponsibility #TakeBackYourFuture We Do Not Inherit the Earth from Our Ancestors; We Borrow It from Our Children

Google Emissions Jump Nearly 50% Over Five Years As AI Use Surges: An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Financial Times: Google's greenhouse gas emissions have surged 48 percent in the past five years due to the expansion of its data centers that underpin artificial intelligence systems, leaving its commitment to get to "net zero" by 2030 in doubt. The Silicon Valley company's pollution amounted to 14.3 million tons of carbon equivalent in 2023, a 48 percent increase from its 2019 baseline and a 13 percent rise since last year, Google said in its annual environmental report on Tuesday. Google said the jump highlighted "the challenge of reducing emissions" at the same time as it invests in the build-out of large language models and their associated applications and infrastructure, admitting that "the future environmental impact of AI" was "complex and difficult to predict." Chief sustainability officer Kate Brandt said the company remained committed to the 2030 target but stressed the "extremely ambitious" nature of the goal. "We do still expect our emissions to continue to rise before dropping towards our goal," said Brandt. She added that Google was "working very hard" on reducing its emissions, including by signing deals for clean energy. There was also a "tremendous opportunity for climate solutions that are enabled by AI," said Brandt. [...] In Tuesday's report, Google said its 2023 energy-related emissions -- which come primarily from data center electricity consumption -- rose 37 percent year on year, and overall represented a quarter of its total greenhouse gas emissions. Google's supply chain emissions -- its largest chunk, representing 75 percent of its total emissions -- also rose 8 percent. Google said they would "continue to rise in the near term" as a result in part of the build-out of the infrastructure needed to run AI systems. Google has pledged to achieve net zero across its direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, and to run on carbon-free energy during every hour of every day within each grid it operates by the same date. However, the company warned in Tuesday's report that the "termination" of some clean energy projects during 2023 had pushed down the amount of renewables it had access to. Meanwhile, the company's data centre electricity consumption had "outpaced" Google's ability to bring more clean power projects online in the US and Asia-Pacific regions. Google's data centre electricity consumption increased 17 percent in 2023, and amounted to approximately 7-10 percent of global data center electricity consumption, the company estimated.Its data centers also consumed 17 percent more water in 2023 than during the previous year, Google said. Read more of this story at Slashdot.