the Rising Environmental Cost of AI: openai’s Sora and Beyond
OpenAI‘s new AI video generator, Sora 2, is rapidly gaining traction, reaching 1 million downloads in under five days – even faster then ChatGPT. Currently limited to iOS users via an invitation system due to its immense computing demands, Sora’s videos are already making waves online. Though,this popularity is sparking renewed debate about the significant environmental impact of artificial intelligence.
The energy consumption required to power AI is now exceeding that of even cryptocurrency mining. Researcher Alex de Vries-Gao estimates AI currently accounts for 20% of global data center electricity use, a figure projected to double by year-end. The International Energy Agency (IEA) reports data centers consumed 1.5% of global electricity in 2024, growing four times faster than overall energy demand, and predicts this will double by 2030.MIT Technology Review forecasts AI’s energy needs will surpass the total consumption of all US data centers by 2028 – enough to power 22% of US homes for a year.
This surge is fueled by large-scale initiatives like the $500 billion Stargate Project, a partnership between OpenAI, Oracle, SoftBank, and MGX.
The environmental impact isn’t limited to electricity. Data centers require vast amounts of ultrapure water for cooling. training the GPT-3 model alone consumed an estimated 700,000 liters of fresh water. Experts predict global AI water demand could reach 4 to 6 billion cubic meters by 2027.
Moreover, the production of the advanced chips necessary for AI is resource-intensive, requiring significant energy, water, and rare minerals. Each new chip generation necessitates a complete manufacturing restart, adding to the overall carbon footprint. To illustrate the scale, generating a single AI image uses as much energy as a microwave for 5 seconds, while a 5-second AI video consumes the equivalent of over an hour of microwave operation.
As AI continues to advance and become more integrated into daily life, addressing these environmental concerns will be crucial for lasting innovation.
