A report on the United Kingdom showed that the use of generative AI is on the rise, with 83% of Britons stating they are aware of the tools. However, this figure has raised the debate on the sustainability of the technology. Here are the data.
Generative AI: increases usage in the United Kingdom along with the desire for sustainability
The survey conducted by CloudNine PR revealed that in the United Kingdom, the use of generative AI technology is on the rise.
In fact, 83% of the English stated that they are familiar with Generative Artificial Intelligence tools or GenAI tools.
The fact, however, is that of this 83%, almost half (45%) also stated that they want companies to be transparent about the environmental costs associated with these technologies. Not only that, 10% even expressed the willingness to pay a premium for products or services that prioritize energy efficiency and sustainability.
In practice, it seems that a real debate has arisen between the increase in demand for generative AI and its sustainability.
It is not new, in fact, that the data centers managing thousands of servers to generate from AI the various emails, ideas, or recommendations, have a strong energy usage.
Making an example, compared to a simple Google search, which consumes relatively little energy, a single generative AI request can consume up to ten times more electricity.
More Eco-Friendly Generative AI: The Awareness and Agreements of Microsoft and Meta
Here the British have highlighted this growing awareness of the use of technology. In fact, one in five respondents has stated that they do not trust generative AI providers precisely because of their responsible management of environmental impacts.
Continuing with the survey, it seems that there is indeed a desire on the part of the British to use a more ecological generative AI.
In fact, 35% of respondents stated that generative AI tools should “actively remind” users of their environmental impact.
For these people, this small step could already mean a lot towards a more conscious use of ecological generative AI.
On the other hand, even corporate giants are taking steps to safeguard the discussion on the environmental impact of AI and GenAI.
For example, Microsoft announced a $10 billion deal with asset manager Brookfield to provide it with 10.5 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity between 2026 and 2030. This is the largest deal of its kind, equivalent to the electricity consumed by 4 million homes.
Meta, the owner of Facebook, has also recently concluded a significant deal for the purchase of geothermal energy for its US data centers, in anticipation of the expansion of its AI infrastructure. Geothermal energy is a renewable energy source that uses the Earth’s internal heat to produce electricity and heat water.
xAI by Elon Musk and its valuation of 50 billion dollars
In the meantime, recently, there has been talk of how Elon Musk’s xAI is increasingly becoming a potential rival to OpenAI.
The valuation of xAI has exceeded 50 billion dollars and continues to make strategic investments.
In fact, since its launch in early March, xAI has seen its valuation more than double. This result was achieved thanks to renowned investors such as Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, and Valor Equity Partners.
The sovereign fund of Qatar also participated in the funding round, bringing impressive amounts to xAI such as 6 billion dollars from A16z and 24 billion dollars from Sequoia.
