As artificial intelligence spreads through more corners of the U.S. economy, researchers are beginning to quantify an often-overlooked cost tied to its growing appetite for energy.
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Growing AI adoption could modestly increase U.S. carbon emissions, highlighting the need for energy-efficient AI systems.
A study published in Environmental Research Letters estimates that expanding the use of artificial intelligence (AI) across the United States could raise annual carbon dioxide emissions by about 900,000 tons.
Although this represents a measurable increase, the authors emphasize that it would account for only a small fraction of total national emissions.
AI growth brings a manageable carbon cost
As AI systems become more widely deployed to improve efficiency and drive economic growth, the study suggests their overall environmental impact is modest compared to many other energy-intensive industries. The researchers assessed how AI could be adopted across multiple sectors and calculated the additional electricity demand and resulting carbon emissions linked to that expansion.
Key findings include:
As AI systems become more widely deployed to improve efficiency and drive economic growth, the study suggests their overall environmental impact is modest compared to many other energy-intensive industries. The researchers assessed how AI could be adopted across multiple sectors and calculated the additional electricity demand and resulting carbon emissions linked to that expansion.
Key findings include:
Widespread adoption of artificial intelligence across the U.S. economy could lead to about 896,000 additional tons of CO2 emissions each year. Even so, this increase would account for only 0.02% of total U.S. emissions.
At the industry level, energy demand could rise by as much as 12 petajoules per year, an amount roughly equal to the annual electricity use of about 300,000 households in the United States.
Co-author Anthony R. Harding explains: “While the projected emissions from AI adoption are modest compared to other sectors, they still represent a meaningful increase. This underscores the importance of integrating energy efficiency and sustainability into AI development and deployment, especially as adoption accelerates across industries.”
As AI technologies become more integrated into daily operations, researchers encourage industry leaders to incorporate energy efficiency and sustainability into their AI strategies to ensure responsible growth as adoption scales.
Co-author Anthony R. Harding explains: “While the projected emissions from AI adoption are modest compared to other sectors, they still represent a meaningful increase. This underscores the importance of integrating energy efficiency and sustainability into AI development and deployment, especially as adoption accelerates across industries.”
As AI technologies become more integrated into daily operations, researchers encourage industry leaders to incorporate energy efficiency and sustainability into their AI strategies to ensure responsible growth as adoption scales.
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