I see this question stemming from a heartfelt desire to limit the harm you do from individual interactions with AI software, which we know is resource-intensive. But first, step back with me for a moment and free yourself from the guilt of existence.
I bet you’re also an avid recycler? Someone who knows way too much about different types of plastics and religiously sorts things out like an sincere citizen?
While this is a great practice in theory, recyclable items may actually end up incinerated, buried in a landfill, or thrown into the ocean. This is because waste management facilities cannot process many types of plastics, and the flood of garbage produced by our society is simply too overwhelming for our current systems to cope with. So when it comes to plastic recycling, our intentions as consumers are right, but the actions we take often amount to little more than a daily ritual of absolving ourselves of the guilt of participating in a system that contributes to pollution.
It may be a good idea to personally stop using energy-hungry AI-generating software whenever possible now. Still, you may not be able to avoid it forever. Artificial intelligence may aid your future work in ways that will be deemed critical to your performance, and you will have no choice but to let it suck up power and resources so you can get your job done. Honestly, the shift to cloud storage over the last decade has intensely changed the way we approach computing as a society, and I don’t know anyone who has ethical concerns about the number of photos filling up Apple’s iCloud storage. The reality is that personal consumer decisions have less impact on the world than we often like to think.
While I’m skeptical that individual users opting out of AI tools will have a significant impact on the environment, that doesn’t mean the future is hopeless! In any case, I think you should call your government representatives and express your perspective as someone who uses AI and is concerned about the impact of this technology on the long-term health of our planet. Assuming tech companies keep building giant data centers— and indeed we do — we should at least push for sustainable infrastructure, such as on-site renewable energy generation and reducing water operate by computer cooling systems. The public deserves greater transparency about the consumption of extensive amounts of resources on these private sites where our AI tools run.
At your service
Reece
Are you looking for tips on how to navigate the world of artificial intelligence tools? Please send any questions you would like Reece Rogers to answer to mail@wired.com and operate the subject line Hint.