Will sustainable AI ever be a reality?

About this episode

The episode explores the complexities of AI sustainability, discussing its environmental impacts and practical steps for organizations.

In this episode, Oliver Cronk is joined by colleagues James Camilleri and Hélène Sauvé to explore the complex topic of AI sustainability. It's a conversation that spans the environmental impact of AI, from carbon emissions to water usage, and examines whether the industry narrative matches reality. They delve into the trade-offs between energy and water, the role of lifecycle analysis, and how approaches such as federated learning and smaller models could help. They also ask whether "green AI" is more than marketing hype, and what practical steps organisations can take to make AI genuinely sustainable. Useful links for this episode Technology Carbon Standard – Open-sourced by Scott Logic Balancing AI Innovation and Sustainability: Our presentation at HM Treasury ID25 – Oliver Cronk Greener AI - what matters, what helps, and what we still do not know – James Camilleri Introducing AI-related emissions into the Technology Carbon Standard – Hélène Sauvé Mapping the carbon footprint of digital content – Hélène Sauvé Sustainability in AI - why we must listen to the smaller players – Hélène Sauvé Sustainability topic on the Scott Logic Blog Beyond the Hype: Can technology sustainability…

People in this episode

Host: Oliver Cronk

Guests: James Camilleri, Hélène Sauvé

Topics covered

• AI sustainability
• environmental impact of AI
• carbon emissions
• water usage
• green AI
• energy trade-offs
• lifecycle analysis

Keywords

• sustainable AI
• carbon footprint
• federated learning
• smaller models
• green technology
• AI innovation
• environmental trade-offs

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Scott Logic, Mistral Green Tech South West

Books & works: Balancing AI Innovation and Sustainability: Our presentation at HM Treasury ID25, Greener AI - what matters, what helps, and what we still do not know, Introducing AI-related emissions into the Technology Carbon Standard, Mapping the carbon footprint of digital content, Sustainability in AI - why we must listen to the smaller players, Beyond the Hype: Can technology sustainability really make a difference?, Beyond the Hype: Can we do better than 'carbon aware' computing?, Artificial intelligence threatens to raid the water reserves of Europe's driest regions

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