The other day, I was doing my usual post-work doom scroll through social media, reviewing posts from friends, reading headlines of articles published by the New York Times and SF Chronicle, and catching up on the odd meme. Instagram’s new(ish) algorithm means a lot of what I scroll through is either suggested posts by accounts I don’t know or advertisements, but for once something came up that caught my attention: a post by Commons (@commonsearth) titled, “Saying please and thank you to Chat GPT costs OpenAI tens of millions of dollars…and it costs you fresh water.”
Surprised by this statement, I decided to scroll through the post, which went on to tell me that “AI isn’t a brain in your computer, it runs on real tangible technology with servers housed in thousands of data centres which need a lot of energy to operate. These data centres generate heat, and many of them use water-based cooling systems.” This means that every time I, you, or anyone else, ask Chat GPT a question or ask it to write something, we are apparently unknowingly pouring away a bottle of water.
I will admit, I’m not the most knowledgeable about environmental issues – I have a superficial understanding of climate change and the things that are impacting the Earth. I try and do my part where I can but could definitely be doing more. Also, while I don’t use it as much as others, I definitely didn’t previously think twice about using ChatGPT, so, after seeing this post, my research into this topic began and here are a few stats I found:
- According to Hannah Ritchie on Sustainability by numbers, a moderate use of ChatGPT increases a Brit’s emissions by 0.16%
- According various sources, a ChatGPT query consumes about five to ten times more electricity than a simple web search
- According to the UN Environmental Programme, AI-related infrastructure may soon consume six times more water than Denmark, a country of 6 million
I have used it primarily to help review content for my job, but acquaintances of mine have mentioned using it to draft texts, social media posts, witty titles for group chats, amateur sports team names and even fashion advice (eg. What shoes should I wear with a sparkly silver mini dress?) In a recent article in TeenVogue, a self-proclaimed young person’s guide to conquering the world, it was noted that young people are using ChatGPT as a therapist, and Mark Zuckerberg mentioned it becoming some people’s IRL (in-real-life) friends. The range for how the bot is used is incredible.
However, if people were aware of the impact ChatGPT has on the environment, would they be using it as much? The answer is most likely no. Most companies already have initiatives in place and recognise that with advancements in tech must come continued sustainability, but they should be speaking out more about its impacts.
Now, I’m not saying don’t use ChatGPT – it is still a very powerful and very helpful tool that we can take advantage of. However, ask yourself, can this question be a Google search instead? Or even a question to a colleague or friend? We must continue to do our part to look after the Earth – so reduce, reuse, recycle, and think twice before you ChatGPT.
Ps. This article was not written using ChatGPT