Scientists Have Already Found AI’s Hard Limitation
That was fast
There have been numerous theories and rampant speculation about how artificial intelligence (AI) is going to shape and reshape our world. Some people have been alarmist, claiming that AI is going to lead to millions of lost jobs. Some have even claimed that AI could lead to the extinction of humanity. While AI’s capabilities have grown exponentially over the past few years, the computers that power AI are already running up against a hard limitation that few people saw coming — power consumption.
New studies have shown that by 2026, AI data centers will consume as much electricity as the entire nation of Japan. As AI has grown in power and prominence, so too has its appetite for energy. In 2022, AI was already accounting for roughly 2% of global energy demand. By 2030, AI could be sucking up 10% of the world’s total energy output. That is unsustainable.
In a world where energy prices, the amount of energy produced, the types of energy, and fears about resource scarcity are at the forefront of many people’s minds, it seems outrageous and irresponsible to allow AI to guzzle up so much power. This is why Microsoft is considering investing billions of dollars into the creation of nuclear reactors (including the reactor at the infamous site of the Three Mile Island disaster.) AI needs…
