Gerry Farkova

AI is transforming the way we work in market research, but this progress comes at a cost. Every AI prompt, dataset, and model requires energy and, importantly, water. Behind the scenes, vast data centres run around the clock to power these systems and keep them cool. It’s estimated ChatGPT used 14.46bn kWh in a single year – more than the annual consumption of 117 countries[ 1 ].

The ‘Green DiSC’ initiative is the first open access, free certification scheme for institutions aiming to mitigate the environmental impacts of their computational research. High-performance computing, AI and large datasets have a negative environmental impact due to the large volumes of greenhouse gas emissions they produce.

A milestone year for the wrong reasons: 2024 officially became the first year to pass the 1.5 degrees global warming limit. Anyone saying ‘the time for action is now’ is already too late. Arguments about who should carry the weight of the blame are a waste of time. We all have a part to play in exiting what UN secretary António Guterres has called a ‘road to ruin’.