The International Energy Agency (IEA) has published its first major report on the AI gold rush's impact on global energy consumption — and its findings paint a worrying, and perhaps ...
contradictory, picture. Energy use from data centres, including for artificial intelligence applications, is predicted to double over the next five years to 3% of global energy use. AI-specific power consumption could drive over half of this growth globally, the report found. Some data centres today consume as much electricity as 100,000 households. The hyperscalers of the future could gobble up 20x that number, according to the IEA. By 2030, data centres are predicted to run on 50% renewable energy, the rest comprising a mix of coal, nuclear power, and new natural gas-fired plants. The findings paint a bleak picture for the climate, but there's a silver lining, the IEA said. While AI is set to gobble up more energy, its ability to unlock efficiencies from power systems and discover new materials could provide a counterweight. The 💜 of EU tech The latest rumblings from the EU tech scene, a story from our wise ol' founder Boris, and some questionable AI art. It's free, every week, in your inbox. Sign up now! "With the rise of AI, the energy sector is at the forefront of one of the most important technological revolutions of our time," said Fatih Birol, IEA's executive director. "AI is a tool, potentially an incredibly powerful one, but it is up to us – our societies, governments, and companies – how we use it." AI can help to optimise power grids, increase the energy output of solar and wind farms through better…