With great responsibility comes the need for great power (sources) – how the growth in AI is going to drain energy from everyone – unless it is rationed!
We all need energy to get by. Whether it is for transport, heating. cooking, computers, phones, lighting, whatever.
The monster raving lunatics in the Democratic Party and the UN think that energy should be made as expensive as possible to reduce demand.
AI thinks these morons should go pound sand – the politicians may be able to abuse humanity, but the world needs AI and AI needs steady, cheap, reliable energy – which renewables are incapable of delivering.
“Renewable” energy sources are too unreliable, unsafe and expensive to form the basis of ay reliable supply. On top of that they are ugly, prevent forests and plants from absorbing CO2 from the and, instead, kill birds, bees, bats onshore and whales, dolphins, porpoises, sharks and ocean eco-systems, offshore – when they are not hurling broken rotor blades onto pristine coastlines. All whilst removing sources of food for an increasingly hungry planet. Stupid “greens”!!!
Other sources of energy are needed – and now we have a huge bodacious monster that consumes ever increasing, copious amounts of energy – prompting big tech to buy up nuclear power plants to secure a reliable energy source!
Here’s a piece on the growing demand for energy by AI. But first, here’s a primer about Moore’s Law from Wikipedia:
“The observation is named after Gordon Moore, the co-founder of Fairchild Semiconductor and Intel (and former CEO of the latter), who in 1965 noted that the number of components per integrated circuit had been doubling every year,[a] and projected this rate of growth would continue for at least another decade. In 1975, looking forward to the next decade, he revised the forecast to doubling every two years, a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 41%. Moore's empirical evidence did not directly imply that the historical trend would continue, nevertheless his prediction has held since 1975 and has since become known as a "law".”
It is not too big of s reach to extend the analogy to the demand for energy from AI ad supporting data centers– AI will double its demand for energy every two years!
At the moment, AI is learning how to speak and learning how things mov all interact, physically – it is somewhat mathematically challenged when dealing with large numbers, so it is learning that too. Pretty soon, it will be able to replicate any thug that is recorded digitally – and there will be AI news channels, movies, documentaries and sitcoms (with “canned” applause – drawing from every piece of literature ever written or put on the silver screen – to present it in any genre, tailored to any audience preference. Live theatre might be a bit of a challenge so wrestling, sports, talent shows, reality shows etc will remain “live” and not so programmable by AI.
Then AI will start inventing “stuff” and doing science in all areas, from medicine to space, to transport, to environment – everything. AI will develop “imagination” on its own!
All this requires more energy – cheap, safe, reliable energy – Hey, maybe AI will come up with closer ad closer inventions that generate perpetual energy – and create always wining investment portfolios that will eliminate poverty! Let’s hope it does not lead to eating bugs!
Okay, here’s the article:
Charting the race for energy in the Age of AI
“According to estimates from the International Energy Agency (IEA), the rapid growth of AI and traditional data centers is poised to significantly increase global energy demands. By 2026, the electricity required to support these facilities is going to be massive — roughly double what huge economies like France or Texas consume in a year.”
2026 is just 13 months away!
“The fact that data centers alone could soon require this level of power underscores the immense strain the technology sector is placing on global energy resources, emphasizing the need for more sustainable energy solutions to keep up with the surging demands of the digital economy.”
“The software used in data centers affects how much energy they use. A 2021 study found that Python, a popular and easy-to-use coding language, is not very energy efficient compared to older languages like Java and C.”
Someone better use AI to turn Python energy demands into those of Java!
“The advances in Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE), the growth of hyperscalers, and coding language optimization show that the industry is making progress, but finding creative new ways to leverage great computing power with less energy will be critical as the AI revolution continues.”
Lots more in the linked article with some nice charts showing changes in demand.
Onwards!!
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Peter, you might want to fix that word "hating" in the first paragraph. ;-)
Well, Amazon, if they can get the permits, will have 4 of their very own nuclear reactors built in Richland, WA to support AI. AI is obviously more important than human beings to the greedy monopolies, politicians, agencies, etc.