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AI is forcing organisations to rethink sustainability commitments

A new report has laid bare the energy demands of generative artificial intelligence technologies, and the impact on wider business decisions. 

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Published today, Tuesday 14th January 2025, Developing Sustainable Gen AI is a new study by Capgemini focused on the rapidly rising environmental footprint of artificial intelligence. 

As the prevalence of generative AI grows – with just 6% of organisations integrating this technology by late-2023, but 24% using it by October 2024 – so too are concerns surrounding its effect on climate and planet. Almost half [48%] of executives now believe AI has triggered a rise in their organisation’s greenhouse emissions.

Among organisations that are measuring this impact on emissions, greenhouse gas output from AI use is projected to grow in the coming years, from around 2.6% of total carbon equivalent emissions, to 4.8%. However, only a small portion [12%] are actually measuring this, and just 38% reported being ‘aware’ of this issue. Meanwhile, performance, scalability and cost are key considerations for generative AI model evaluation by firms, while sustainability was only of limited importance.

As few as one-fifth of executives considered Gen AI’s footprint as a top five factor criterion for choice of artificial intelligence vendor. This is despite 50% understanding that including sustainability in all generative AI-related requirements would significantly reduce emissions. Nevertheless, there are some silver linings to the cloudy outlook. 

The use of AI within organisations is crucial in improving energy efficiency, and companies that do acknowledge the emissions trade-off are likely to already be switching to renewables, or preparing to make the change. Artificial intelligence is also being used to support sustainability initiatives, for example through the use of computational power to align roadmaps with relevant initiatives.

Industry-wide efforts are now required to help improve knowledge in this area. This includes raising awareness of the difference in climate impact between the use of pre-trained AI models and ‘built from scratch’ systems that deliver bespoke solutions based on specific needs, requirements and challenges. Off-the-shelf systems leave organisations reliant on tech providers to address AI’s environmental footprint, with many decision-makers suggesting the industry as a whole lacks transparency to effectively guide their choices.  

‘If we want Gen AI to be a force for sustainable business value, there needs to be a market discussion around data collaboration, drawing up industry-wide standards around how we account for the environmental footprint of AI, so business leaders are equipped to make more informed, responsible business decisions, and mitigate these impacts,’ said Cyril Garcia, Capgemini’s Head of Global Sustainability Services and Corporate Responsibility and Group Executive Board Member.

‘AI has the potential to accelerate business objectives and sustainability initiatives. We are proposing here practical steps to follow for business leaders to fully harness technologies such as Gen AI and deliver a positive impact for organizations, society and the planet. We are looking forward to this topic being explored in more depth at the AI Summit in February 2025,’ Garcia continued.

The study comes the same week as Downing Street’s announcement of ‘mainlining’ AI into public services and the UK economy to bring about a ‘decade of renewal’. While the industry has responded with some £14billion of private investment in the sector, which will lead to the creation of more than 13,000 jobs, specifics on criteria for procurement, and the influence of environmental factors on this, remain thin on the ground. 

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Image: Austin Distel via Unsplash

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