Some ways in which the spread of AI data centres is challenging utilities and grid managers, and how the power industry in the US is responding

Anurag Srivastava, Professor of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering, West Virginia University writes on The Conversation about how  utilities in the US are coping with AI data centres. What are your views. Is the experience similar in Europe and other regions?   How utilities are working to meet AI data centers’ voracious appetite for electricity … Continue reading Some ways in which the spread of AI data centres is challenging utilities and grid managers, and how the power industry in the US is responding

Energy in Demand News, December 1, 2024

The New York Times (behind a paywall) wrote: “Five dry words — ‘transitioning away from fossil fuels’ — led to a bitter diplomatic spat Tuesday. . . . A handful of petrostates, led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, ensured that a United Nations General Assembly resolution on climate change steered clear of such language, despite … Continue reading Energy in Demand News, December 1, 2024

Data centres are threatening the very energy transition on which so many governments have staked everything

Irina Slav writes on the OilPrice website about how data centres, particularly since the AI rush began, are turning into an unexpected obstacle that may well compromise the whole transition offensive against hydrocarbons. What are your views?   Data Centers Highlight the Limits of Renewable Energy Scaling Until about a year ago, no one paid … Continue reading Data centres are threatening the very energy transition on which so many governments have staked everything

AI will greatly improve energy efficiency

There has been much talk of the massive amount of energy likely to be used by data centres and artificial intelligence, but could there be another side of the story? Asks Andrew Warren, Chair of the British Energy Efficiency Federation, in an article in the October issue of Energy in Buildings & Industry.   Is … Continue reading AI will greatly improve energy efficiency

Hopes have grown that AI may also help humanity tackle global environmental problems such as climate change

In an article on The Conversation website, Ehsan Noroozinejad, Senior Researcher, Urban Transformations Research Centre, Western Sydney University and Seyedali Mirjalili, Professor of Artificial Intelligence, Faculty of Business and Hospitality, Torrens University Australia  discuss how artificial intelligence can help address many of our global environmental problems.   From climate change to landfill, AI promises to … Continue reading Hopes have grown that AI may also help humanity tackle global environmental problems such as climate change

Large language models such as ChatGPT are some of the most energy-guzzling technologies of all

Big tech is playing its part in reaching net zero targets, but its vast new datacentres are run at huge cost to the environment. Mariana Mazzucato, professor in the economics of innovation and public value at University College London, discusses the carbon footprint of ChatGPT in an article on the Guardian website.   The ugly … Continue reading Large language models such as ChatGPT are some of the most energy-guzzling technologies of all

Our digital data has a growing carbon footprint

While most climate change activists are focused on limiting emissions from the automotive, aviation and energy industries, the processing of digital data is already comparable to these sectors and is still growing. In 2020, digitisation was purported to generate 4% of global GHG emissions. Tom Jackson, Professor of Information and Knowledge Management at Loughborough University … Continue reading Our digital data has a growing carbon footprint

There is an urgent need to increase the energy efficiency of data centres and reduce their environmental impact

Alessandro Bruschini, Infrastructure Manager from Aruba wrote on the Techerati website on the urgent need to improve the energy performance of data centres and offers three solutions.   Why going ‘green‘ is crucial to all data centre operations Three solutions that offer a ‘green’ route towards energy efficiency improvements It’s been said many times over, … Continue reading There is an urgent need to increase the energy efficiency of data centres and reduce their environmental impact