Key Takeaways
1. OpenAI faces financial losses in the tens of millions due to users including polite terms in prompts to ChatGPT.
2. Each AI-generated prompt consumes significant energy, with a 100-word email using around 0.14 kWh.
3. The annual energy consumption for weekly AI-generated emails can equal that of a refrigerator over two weeks.
4. AI technologies contribute about 2% of the world’s electricity consumption, surpassing some industrial sectors.
5. Online reactions vary from sarcastic humor to serious concerns about focusing on more significant energy issues rather than digital courtesy.
A brief post on X on April 16 led to a notable discussion: a user inquired about the financial losses OpenAI faces due to users including courteous terms like “please” and “thank you” in ChatGPT. The unexpected answer came directly from CEO Sam Altman, who stated, “Tens of millions of dollars.” Each prompt, regardless of how small, requires a considerable amount of energy.
Energy Consumption Insights
As reported by the Washington Post, creating a single AI-generated email of 100 words consumes around 0.14 kWh of power. Doing this weekly results in nearly 7.5 kWh annually, which is comparable to the energy used by a modern refrigerator over two weeks. When considering the millions of prompts generated daily across the globe, it becomes apparent that digital courtesy is no longer just a trivial matter. Energy experts suggest that AI technologies currently represent about 2% of the world’s electricity consumption, surpassing several industrial sectors.
Reactions from the Online Community
On the subreddit r/nottheonion, which is recognized for its strange yet genuine news, the revelation regarding “polite electricity consumption” triggered a flurry of sarcastic reactions. One commenter joked, “Mom always said it doesn’t cost anything to be nice – but turns out she was wrong.” Others took a more serious approach, cautioning that this emphasis might overshadow more significant energy concerns, such as industrial pollution or extravagant lifestyles. The argument: instead of discussing the expenses related to saying “please” and “thank you,” we ought to focus on issues like data centers, heated swimming pools, and the carbon emissions from affluent countries.
Source:
Link