I can tell that this question comes from an honest place of wanting to minimize the harm you can do through your individual interactions with AI software, which we know is very resourceful. But first, take a step back with me for a moment and free yourself from the guilt of existence.
I bet you are an avid recycler too? Someone who knows a lot about different types of plastic and religiously organizes it like a senior citizen?
While this is a great practice in theory, your recyclables may actually be incinerated, buried in a landfill, or thrown into the ocean. This is because waste management sites cannot process many types of plastics, and the waste our society produces is simply too much for our current systems to handle. So, in the case of plastic recycling, our intentions as consumers are right, but the actions we take are little more than a daily ritual that guilts us into participating in a polluting system. They are pure.
It may feel good to opt out of using AI software for personal energy generation when you can. However, you may not be able to avoid it forever. Your future job may be enhanced by AI in any way deemed critical to your performance, and you’ll have no choice but to let it suck up the power and resources you need. Be able to complete your work. Honestly, the shift to cloud storage of the last decade has drastically changed how we approach computing as a society, and I don’t know anyone who can count the number of photos clogging up their Apple iCloud storage. be morally conflicted about The reality is that personal, consumer decisions have less impact on the world than we often like to think.
While I doubt that individual users’ avoidance of AI tools will have a significant impact on the environment, that doesn’t mean the future is hopeless! If anything, I think you should call your government representatives and explain your perspective as someone who uses AI and the technology’s impact on the long-term health of our planet. is Assuming tech companies continue to build massive data centers — and they are — we should at least push for sustainable infrastructure, such as on-site renewable energy generation and water consumption through computer cooling systems. A decrease in The public deserves more transparency about how the vast amounts of resources that power our AI tools are used on the private sites.
at your service,
Race
Looking for advice on how to navigate the world of artificial intelligence tools? Send any questions you want answered to Reece Rogers at mail@wired.com, and use the subject line. Prompt.
