DUSSELDORF: Artificial Intelligence (AI) takes up so much energy that the data centres in Europe where the technology is being developed are expected to need nearly three times the amount of power by 2030, a study published on Friday showed.
The study, released by the consultant firm McKinsey, showed that electricity demand is projected to be more than 150 terawatt-hours (TWh) by 2030 from today's 62 TWh.
This means AI will account for about 5% of Europe's total power consumption from it's current roughly 2% today, the study said.
The increasing electricity demand from AI could accelerate climate change if it is not met with renewable energy, according to the study. At present, a large proportion of the electricity for data centres still comes from fossil fuels.
The growing demand for clean electricity brings significant challenges, McKinsey partner Diego Hernandez Diaz told dpa.
He noted that reliable power sources are only available to a limited extent. Additionally, there are bottlenecks in the availability of skilled workers. The study indicates that the additional demand for green electricity requires massive investments in renewable energy sources. – dpa
