AI May Kill Jobs Plus It Can Kill Bambi, Koalas, and Whales
March 8, 2024
This essay is the work of a dumb dinobaby. No smart software required.Amid the AI hype is little mention of a huge problem.
As Nature’s Kate Crawford reports, “Generative AI’s Environmental Costs Are Soaring—and Mostly Secret.” Besides draining us of fresh water, AI data centers also consume immense amounts of energy. We learn:
“One assessment suggests that ChatGPT, the chatbot created by OpenAI in San Francisco, California, is already consuming the energy of 33,000 homes. It’s estimated that a search driven by generative AI uses four to five times the energy of a conventional web search. Within years, large AI systems are likely to need as much energy as entire nations.”
Even OpenAI’s head Sam Altman admits this is not sustainable, but he has a solution in mind. Is he pursuing more efficient models, or perhaps redesigning data centers? Nope. Altman’s hopes are pinned on nuclear fusion. But that technology has been “right around the corner” for the last 50 years. We need solutions now, not in 2050 or later. Sadly, it is unlikely AI companies will make the effort to find and enact those solutions unless forced to. The article notes a piece of legislation, the Artificial Intelligence Environmental Impacts Act of 2024, has finally been introduced in the Senate. But in the unlikely event the bill makes it through the House, it may be too feeble to make a real difference. Crawford considers:
“To truly address the environmental impacts of AI requires a multifaceted approach including the AI industry, researchers and legislators. In industry, sustainable practices should be imperative, and should include measuring and publicly reporting energy and water use; prioritizing the development of energy-efficient hardware, algorithms, and data centers; and using only renewable energy. Regular environmental audits by independent bodies would support transparency and adherence to standards. Researchers could optimize neural network architectures for sustainability and collaborate with social and environmental scientists to guide technical designs towards greater ecological sustainability. Finally, legislators should offer both carrots and sticks. At the outset, they could set benchmarks for energy and water use, incentivize the adoption of renewable energy and mandate comprehensive environmental reporting and impact assessments. The Artificial Intelligence Environmental Impacts Act is a start, but much more will be needed — and the clock is ticking.”
Tick. Tock. Need a dead dolphin? Use a ChatGPT-type system.
Cynthia Murrell, March 8, 2024
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