Episode 113: The Uncomfortable Truth About AI

Chat GPT can be incredibly useful and save a lot of time, but it can also have a dramatic effect on carbon emissions. We're going to take a closer look and discuss ways to be productive and efficient while helping to protect the environment.

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Transcript

·      AI can be a big time saver, get you through writer’s block, and in some cases, help you consider ideas you may not have thought of on your own.

That said, of course, garbage in, garbage out.

·      AI can definitely make mistakes. You always want to look at the sources of information used.

·      It can yield results that sound canned and not like you, though you can train it to sound more like you by giving it writing samples. Look at the finished product and touch up the results as needed. 

Another consideration is AI’s effects on the environment. AI uses tremendous amounts of energy. 

·      It requires as much as 33 times the energy use of traditional software due to all the memory involved.

·      Traditional Google search uses about 1/10 the energy of a search on Chat GPT.

·      The International Energy Agency, which tracks global energy use, predicts that in two years, global energy consumption will increase at least 35% and possibly as much as 128%.

·      Google’s carbon emissions have increased 48% over the past 5 years.

·      Microsoft’s carbon emissions went up 40% over the past 3 years.

Let’s imagine that you decide to let Chat GPT do a task for you, like writing a newsletter. This could save you a lot of time. It will also use a lot of energy. Using Chat GPT to write the newsletter instead of using Google Docs or Word is like jumping into an 18 wheel semi truck with a fully loaded trailer and driving it to the grocery store to get a gallon of milk versus taking a moped to the store. The semi will get 5 to 8 miles to the gallon, versus 80 to 150 mpg for the moped. 

Here are some ways to use AI less frequently. 

·      Create templates that you can use over and over. 

·      Use apps that you can program once and then use repeatedly. 

·      Bookmark websites and documents that are go-to sources of excellent reference info. 

·      Take screenshots that you can refer to repeatedly, such as charts, instructions and tables, and save these in a Favorites folder.

So when it comes to AI, think about minimizing unnecessary trips. You can still be highly productive and highly efficient while reducing your carbon footprint. 

References:

Bert’s Mega Mall blog. “What to Know Before You Buy a Motor Scooter.” Jan. 21, 2020.

Bourzac, K. “Fixing AI’s Energy Crisis.” Nature, Oct. 17, 2024. 

Hale Trailer Brake and Wheel blog. “10 Tips to Managing Semi-Truck’s Fuel Efficiency.” Feb. 3, 2023. 

Noble, G. & Berry, F. “AI’s Environmental Footprint: How Much Energy Does It Take to Run Chat GPT?”  Planet Detroit, Oct. 2, 2024.