A study published in Scientific Reports in 2024 claims that "AI systems emit between 130 and 1500 times less CO2e per page of text generated compared to human writers, while AI illustration systems emit between 310 and 2900 times less CO2e per image than their human counterparts." 👀

Huge if true.

Here's the kicker: "For the human writing process, we looked at humans’ total annual carbon footprints, and then took a subset of that annual footprint based on how much time they spent writing." 🤔

Of course, writing contributes to carbon footprints in the same way as all other human activities like *checks notes* heavy industry, transport, agriculture, and energy and heating. /s 🙄

Last author Andrew W. Torrance declares holding shares in NVIDIA. 🤦

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-54271-x

All credit for these insights goes to Higher Ed discussions of AI writing & use https://facebook.com/groups/632930835501841/

#ChatGPT #ScientificReports #AItools #ChatBots #AIwriting #CarbonEmissions #EnergyUseStudy #CO2emissions #ScientificWriting #CarbonFootprintOfAI #EnvironmentalImpactOfAI #EnvironmentalImpactAnalysis #SciComm

The carbon emissions of writing and illustrating are lower for AI than for humans - Scientific Reports

As AI systems proliferate, their greenhouse gas emissions are an increasingly important concern for human societies. In this article, we present a comparative analysis of the carbon emissions associated with AI systems (ChatGPT, BLOOM, DALL-E2, Midjourney) and human individuals performing equivalent writing and illustrating tasks. Our findings reveal that AI systems emit between 130 and 1500 times less CO2e per page of text generated compared to human writers, while AI illustration systems emit between 310 and 2900 times less CO2e per image than their human counterparts. Emissions analyses do not account for social impacts such as professional displacement, legality, and rebound effects. In addition, AI is not a substitute for all human tasks. Nevertheless, at present, the use of AI holds the potential to carry out several major activities at much lower emission levels than can humans.

Nature

AI’s climate consequences often go unnoticed and underestimated. #AIandClimate

Hashtags: #chatGPT #AIandClimateChange #EnvironmentalImpactofAI Entities: Artificial Intelligence, Climate Change Summery: The use of artificial intelligence (AI) is having a significant impact on efforts to combat climate change, but the negative consequences of AI are often overlooked. Large AI models, which require substantial amounts of computing power, contribute to carbon emissions.…

https://webappia.com/ais-climate-consequences-often-go-unnoticed-and-underestimated-aiandclimate/

AI's climate consequences often go unnoticed and underestimated. #AIandClimate

The increasing use of artificial intelligence (AI) in various industries, including the oil and gas sector, is having significant negative impacts on climate change efforts. Large AI models require massive amounts of computing power and energy, resulting in substantial carbon emissions. Additionally, AI can be used to spread misinformation about climate change, further hindering progress. While AI does have potential positive applications in addressing climate change, such as improving renewable energy systems, the negative consequences must be addressed and mitigated.

Webappia