A nature.com article reads that "it's estimated that a search driven by generative AI uses four to five times the energy of a conventional web search" (Crawford, 2024). Using ChatGPT, even for just a simple prompt, uses water and energy, which affects its carbon footprint. Generative AI like ChatGPT has a massive carbon footprint because it goes through energy at an alarming rate, and this is often not renewable or environmentally-friendly energy due to cost factors. Many people, especially teenagers, use ChatGPT for just about everything, from doing their homework to looking up simple questions--two tasks that can easily be accomplished other ways (such as doing their homework themselves or using Google as a search engine). This is why the question of whether or not Gen-AI like ChatGPT is a want or a need is so relevant today. AI usage has never been so common, and it's important to remember the huge carbon footprint you are leaving behind when you use Gen-AIs to look something up or complete a task.

Source:
Nature.com Article