Does that use a lot of energy?

Energy Production and Consumption

Explore data on how energy production and use varies across the world.

AI’s energy usage is less than previously thought | Waterloo News

Contrary to popular belief, new research finds that the use of artificial intelligence has a minimal effect on global greenhouse gas emissions and may actually benefit the environment and the

Will AI really consume more electricity than the US produces? - Poynter

President Trump said AI could need nearly twice the nation’s electricity, but credible projections put its future share at no more than 25%

It's Not Easy Being Green: On the Energy Efficiency of Programming Languages

Does the choice of programming language affect energy consumption? Previous highly visible studies have established associations between certain programming languages and energy consumption. A causal misinterpretation of this work has led academics and industry leaders to use or support certain languages based on their claimed impact on energy consumption. This paper tackles this causal question directly: it develops a detailed causal model capturing the complex relationship between programming language choice and energy consumption. This model identifies and incorporates several critical but previously overlooked factors that affect energy usage. These factors, such as distinguishing programming languages from their implementations, the impact of the application implementations themselves, the number of active cores, and memory activity, can significantly skew energy consumption measurements if not accounted for. We show -- via empirical experiments, improved methodology, and careful examination of anomalies -- that when these factors are controlled for, notable discrepancies in prior work vanish. Our analysis suggests that the choice of programming language implementation has no significant impact on energy consumption beyond execution time.

We did the math on AI’s energy footprint. Here’s the story you haven’t heard.

The emissions from individual AI text, image, and video queries seem small—until you add up what the industry isn’t tracking and consider where it’s heading next.

Breakthrough Energy | Home

Empowering innovators to build the future of energy

Putting solar panels on land used for biofuels would produce enough electricity for all cars and trucks to go electric

The world dedicates a Poland-sized area of land to liquid biofuels. Is there a more efficient way to generate energy?

US data centers’ energy use amid the artificial intelligence boom

Data centers accounted for 4% of total U.S. electricity use in 2024. Their energy demand is expected to more than double by 2030.

Share of electricity in total final energy consumption

Get the present share of electricity statistics in total final energy consumption mix by country or region.

Doing nothing at work

Many engineers should be doing less work. I don’t necessarily mean producing less code or fewer changes, but literally working fewer hours in the day. When they do work, they should be working at a slower pace. I like to aim to be running at 80% utilization by default: unless I have a high-pressure project going on, I spend 20% of my workday away from the computer.

Oil and Gas=Peril and Poverty/ Solar and Wind=Prosperity and Protection

2026 has changed the psychological meaning of energy forever

Ditch the niceties in AI prompts to save energy use, say researchers

A UN report warns of the rapid growth in AI energy consumption, but suggests users can improve efficiency by making prompts more concise

China’s Shift to Clean Energy Is Saving the Paris Climate Accord

Beijing’s massive manufacturing investments have driven the costs of clean energy down.

AI’s climate impact is much smaller than many feared

New findings challenge the widespread belief that AI is an environmental villain. By analyzing U.S. economic data and AI usage across industries, researchers discovered that AI’s energy consumption—while significant locally—barely registers at national or global scales. Even more surprising, AI could help accelerate green technologies rather than hinder them.