Julia Eisner:
HOW SUSTAINABLE IS AI?
HOW MANY AND WHAT RESOURCES DOES IT CONSUME?

Waste of AI resources

Release : 30.03.2024
Expert : Julia Eisner

Moderation: Elena Messner, Gabriele Schelle
Consequence: 5

We speak to Julia Eisner, a researcher in the field of empirical social research and consumer research, about the resource consumption and ecological balance of AI, in particular about the enormous electricity and water consumption of AI. The discourse on the ecological impact of AI systems is still in its early stages.

About the expert:

Julia Eisner, BA. MA., is involved in teaching and research at the University of Applied Sciences Wiener Neustadt on the Wieselburg campus. Her research focuses on empirical social research and consumer research, as well as the ecologically and socially responsible use of data and artificial intelligence. Julia Eisner is currently completing her doctorate in sociology at the University of Vienna with a focus on trustworthy generative AI in corporate communication & PR. Her commitment is also evident outside of the academic world through her activity in the Women in AI association, where she gives keynotes and takes part in panel discussions.

About the host:

Elena Messneris an award-winning writer and cultural scientist.Gabriele Schelleis a theatre director and author.

In this episode:

0:00 Intro

1:59 Ecological potentials and risks of AI

3:06 AI for sustainability

3:25 Digital Farming

4:30 Reduce food waste

5:37 Sustainability of AI itself

7:03 Power consumption and carbon footprint of AI

8:02 CO2 emissions and electricity consumption ChatGPT3

8:34 Energy balance over the life cycle of AI

9:44 Electronic waste

10:19 AI’s water consumption is huge

13:50 Quote: “The discussion about ethical aspects is often not conducted with reference to sustainability. However, with a comprehensive definition of social sustainability, these aspects must also be considered as the subject of a sustainability assessment.”Series, IÖW, Berlin 2021

14:34 Sustainability criteria for AI

17:04 Reporting obligation of companies in the EU

18:31 Quote: "In view of the widespread use of AI and its ecological relevance, it would be necessary for a public discourse on AI to also take up perspectives and questions of ecological sustainability in the spirit of human-centered AI development, as demanded by the EU (EU Guidelines, 2019). Since we identify a large number of people in our data who hardly dare or can hardly make judgments on the topic, imparting AI skills in this area is necessary for an enlightened citizenry." Opinion Monitor, Factsheet No. 6 March 2022

19:12 Media discourse on the sustainability of AI

25:31 Transparency of data

26:12 Inter- and transdisciplinary discourse Technology & Social and Human Sciences

29:10 Code in the data world: Male-female 0-1

Links and sources:

Editorial staff and collaboration:

Elena Messner (curation/moderation), Gabriele Schelle (curation/moderation), Christian Nisslmüller (production management), Martin Lohr (studio management), Alisa Karabut (graphics).

Support us:

If you like this podcast, we would be happy if you would rate it on the podcast platform. Subscribe to the podcast on the platform of your choice - and feel free to recommend us!

We would like to thank the Schleswig-Holstein State Library for supporting the podcast.

Thanks for listening and see you next time!

Zur Übersicht