The artificial intelligence revolution is running on borrowed time — and borrowed power.

The artificial intelligence revolution is running on borrowed time — and borrowed power.

Every time you ask a chatbot to write a poem, generate an image, or analyze a spreadsheet, you are spinning up a complex chain of high-powered processors in a distant data centre. This “magic” has a very real, and very heavy, physical cost.

The energy footprint of AI is staggering, and it’s growing at a rate that makes grid operators nervous.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) has projected that by 2026, data centres alone could consume as much electricity as the entire nation of Japan. This insatiable thirst isn’t just for electrons. These server farms also consume millions of gallons of water for cooling, putting a strain on local resources.

We are, in effect, building a 21st-century digital miracle on a 20th-century power infrastructure, and the math is becoming unsustainable.

So, what’s the solution? A growing number of engineers and........

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