ChatGPT consumes 17,000 times more energy than an average US household: Report
The entire AI sector is projected to annually consume between 85 to 134 terawatt-hours in the next few years
The widespread integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies into existing tech systems is contributing to a substantial increase in energy consumption,resulting in severe environmental consequences.
According to a report in The New Yorker, ChatGPT, the widely-used chatbot developed by OpenAI, devours over half a million kilowatt-hours of electricity daily, as it handles nearly 200 million user requests worldwide. To put this into perspective, the average American household consumes about 29 kilowatt-hours per day. ChatGPT's energy usage, therefore, exceeds that of an average household by over 17,000 times.
What does it mean?
The projections of these energy consumptions by Artificial Intelligence companies show that if major tech corporations were to integrate generative AI technology into every search, it could result in an annual electricity consumption of around 29 billion kilowatt-hours.
This surpasses the annual energy consumption of entire nations such as Kenya, Guatemala, and Croatia, The New Yorker reported.
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According to a report by Business Insider, with the energy-intensive nature of AI, individual AI servers can match or surpass the power consumption of multiple households combined. By 2027, the entire AI sector could annually consume between 85 to 134 terawatt-hours, equivalent to half a per cent of global electricity consumption, the report adds.
Despite the impact on energy consumption, accurately quantifying the electricity usage of the AI industry remains a challenge due to variability in AI model operations and a lack of transparency from major tech companies.
But the estimates based on data from Nvidia, the top chipmaker in the AI market, suggest a significant surge in energy consumption within the sector in the coming years.
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However, the AI models are not alone in their high energy consumption. For example, Samsung utilises nearly 23 terawatt-hours of power annually. Tech giants such as Google and Microsoft use over 12 and 10 terawatt-hours respectively.
(With inputs from agencies)