Facts & Myths About AI's Energy Usage with Gavin McCormick
From Scaling Laws by Lawfare & University of Texas Law School
April 24, 2026 · 50 min
About this episode
The episode discusses how AI and satellite imagery are transforming the understanding of global greenhouse gas emissions.
In this episode of Scaling Laws, we explore how the "black box" of global greenhouse gas emissions is being cracked open by artificial intelligence and satellite imagery. Kevin Frazier, Director of the AI Innovation and Law Program at the University of Texas School of Law and a Senior Fellow at the Abundance Institute, talks with Gavin McCormick, the founder of ClimateTrace, a global coalition that has revolutionized the process of identifying and quantifying emissions. For decades, climate policy has relied on self-reported data from nations and corporations—a system prone to gaps and "greenwashing." McCormick’s work leverages machine learning to monitor every major source of emissions on Earth in near real-time. We discuss the legal implications of "radical transparency," how AI-driven data can be used to enforce regulations and measure claims, and the myths and facts of AI’s environmental consequences. To get in touch with us, email scalinglaws@lawfaremedia.org. Logan Le-Jeffries, a member of the AI Wranglers student program at the University of Texas School of Law, provided research assistance with this episode. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more…
People in this episode
Host: Kevin Frazier
Guest: Gavin McCormick
Topics covered
- AI and climate change
- greenhouse gas emissions
- machine learning
- environmental policy
- radical transparency
Keywords
- AI
- greenhouse gas emissions
- ClimateTrace
- machine learning
- environmental policy
- radical transparency
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: ClimateTrace, University of Texas School of Law, Abundance Institute
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