Google’s AI energy surge threatens climate goals
CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES — Google’s ambitious plan to achieve net-zero emissions by 2030 has hit a significant roadblock, according to the company’s latest environmental report.
Rather than decreasing, Google’s greenhouse gas emissions have surged by 48% since 2019, with a 13% increase in 2023 alone.
The tech giant attributes this unexpected rise to the growing energy demands of artificial intelligence (AI) and the associated data centers.
AI’s environmental impact
Data centers, which are crucial for powering AI systems, consume massive amounts of electricity, much of which is generated by burning fossil fuels such as coal and natural gas.
This process emits greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide and methane, which contribute to global warming and extreme weather conditions.
These centers also require high voltage transmission lines and significant amounts of water for cooling. They are also noisy and often built where electricity is cheapest, not where renewable energy sources are prevalent.
According to the International Energy Agency, global data center and AI electricity demand could double by 2026. This surge has also affected other major tech companies. For instance, Microsoft’s emissions grew by 29.1% above its 2020 baseline due to the proliferation of data centers, as reported in May.
Experts urge more aggressive action
Tech companies argue that AI can help address climate change by, for example, using data to predict flooding or improve traffic flow, thereby saving gasoline.
Amanda Smith, a senior scientist at the climate nonprofit Project Drawdown, stressed the importance of using AI responsibly. “It’s up to us as humans to watch what we’re doing with it and to question why we’re doing that,” Smith said.
Lisa Sachs, director of the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment, believes more can be done.
Sachs urges Google to “join us in a more rigorous conversation about how to accelerate clean energy amid the climate crisis.”
Google balancing innovation and sustainability
Despite the setback, Google remains committed to its environmental goals.
The company has made significant strides in using renewable energy, with 64% of its global data centers and offices powered by carbon-free energy in 2023.
Google’s data centers are also 1.8 times more energy-efficient than the industry average.
“Reaching this net zero goal by 2030, this is an extremely ambitious goal,” Google’s Chief Sustainability Officer Kate Brandt told the Associated Press.
“We know this is not going to be easy and that our approach will need to continue to evolve and it will require us to navigate a lot of uncertainty, including this uncertainty around the future of AI’s environmental impacts.”