Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming our world at lightning speed, but the current costs to our climate and communities are unsustainable and unacceptable. AI's massive energy appetite could either accelerate the climate crisis and pollute our planet OR supercharge our renewable energy future, where communities have a real voice in how and where AI facilities are built.
Among the companies using AI are four giants that previously made major climate commitments and pledged to use 100% renewable energy: Google, Meta, Amazon, and Microsoft. By spending billions of dollars on AI, they are breaking their promise to use 100% renewable energy and furthering our climate and energy crises.
AI’s enormous energy needs are driving fossil fuels demand, re-starting nukes, and creating greater pollution and higher energy rates for communities nationwide.
But it doesn’t have to be this way. AI could be powered by renewable energy that is non-polluting and works to reduce energy costs for us all. AI could use energy that is clean and just.
AI’s huge power appetite
AI already consumes enough electricity to power 7 million American homes—by 2028, that could jump to the amount of power needed for 22% of all US households.
And American communities are paying the price to feed AI: electricity costs $500 more annually for families in Georgia, while Oregon residents saw 50% rate hikes—largely due to energy-greedy data centers. Families near data centers experience increased noise, congestion, and pollution.
Triple Threat: Coal, Natural Gas, and Nukes
AI is a major driver of polluting and dangerous power plants nationwide.
It is so power hungry that utilities are keeping coal-fired power plants that were slated for closure running to meet the needs of massive servers.
Natural gas is a go-to new energy source for AI. In the American South alone, there are plans for 20 gigawatts of new natural-gas power plants over the next 15 years—enough to power millions of homes—to feed AI’s energy needs.
Tech titans are also turning to nuclear power—Microsoft and Meta re-opening or expanding nuclear plants. And both Google and Amazon are investing in small nuclear reactors.
Nuclear power has many downsides, including safety issues, the problems with nuclear waste disposal, and cost overruns and delays, and is unlikely to meet AI’s soaring energy needs— which means even more reliance on fossil fuels unless tech titans ramp up renewable energy fast.
Driving Climate Chaos
All those fossil fuels from coal and natural gas plants will have a huge climate impact!
We need all major corporations to reduce their emissions to keep the world from warming more than 1.5 degrees, and yet carbon emissions from major tech companies in 2023 have skyrocketed to 150% of average 2020 values:
- Operational emissions grew to 182% of 2020 values for Amazon
- 155% for Microsoft
- 145% for Meta
- 138% for Google
Meanwhile, other industries reliant on data servers are making progress on climate. For example, emissions from large telecom companies decreased to 94% of 2020 values. Green America’s Hang Up on Fossil Fuels campaign urged telecoms to switch to 100% renewable energy and their resulting use of wind and solar power has lower their carbon footprint. Progress is possible!
Expanding Nationwide
AI data centers are cropping up all over the country. As demand for AI grows, the number of data centers nationwide will grow dramatically as well.
Local Impacts
And what does all this firing up of dirty energy mean for local communities?
The communities near the power plants and the data centers are forced to deal with air, noise, and water pollution. And some people are finding that their taps are literally running dry because data centers are using all the ground water where they live.
Chicago-based airline pilot Joshua Zhang told CBS News in 2021 that a new data center in his Printers’ Row neighborhood whines like a gigantic vacuum cleaner that never shuts off. “I try to fly as much as I can to stay away from here,” he said. “I can’t really sleep well… and I have to operate a flight.”
On top of all that, electric rates near data centers are going up fast— and projected to rise much faster. An analysis by Senator Sheldon Whitehouse found that:
- Mid-Atlantic States will see 11-19% bill increases this year.
- Entergy Louisiana is projecting a 90% increase in rates by 2030.
- Yearly power bills have gone up $500 for the average Georgian since 2023.
- Oregon residential rates have increased 50% in the last five years.
We are increasingly paying for AI’s growing need for power in our electric bills, and it’s projected to get much worse.
Big Tech Has the Money to Do Better
The tech titans are raking in the profits. They have the money to invest in renewable energy:
- Google: revenues were $350 billion in 2024, with a net income of $100.1 billion.
- Meta: revenues were $164.5 billion in in 2024 with net income of $62.4 billion
- Amazon: $638 billion in revenue for 2024 with $59.2 billion in net income.
- Microsoft: revenues were a record $262 Billion in 2024 with net income of $93 Billion.
The Solutions Are at Hand
We don’t need to wait for renewables to power AI's future sustainably. Solar panels, wind turbines, and battery storage are already the cheapest and fastest ways to meet this exploding energy demand. The Department of Energy confirms renewable technologies could deliver hundreds of gigawatts by the 2030s.
Advanced battery storage also means data centers can run on 100% clean energy 24/7—storing sunshine and wind power to feed AI systems when needed, without a single blackout. These are some of the wealthiest and most sophisticated companies on Earth. They have the resources and must be held accountable.
And tech titans can boost renewable energy that advances energy justice – creating high paying jobs, supporting local communities, lowering energy costs, and ensuring that the people and communities manufacturing solar, wind, and battery storage technologies are treat well.
Your Voice Powers the Energy Revolution
Tech companies won’t take action unless they feel the pressure.
Green America is mobilizing our members and people around the country to ensure AI becomes a force for climate solutions, not climate destruction. Together, we're demanding that tech giants:
- Build Smart, Build Clean
Data centers should go where they won’t harm communities. Many existing data centers create more noise, pollution, and congestion for underserved neighborhoods already dealing with unsafe and unhealthy conditions. Communities should be fully involved in the placement process to ensure everyone benefits from data center construction.
- Put Efficiency First
Design AI programs to do more with less energy—more efficient chips and processing. No more wasteful computing when lives and our climate are on the line.
- Zero Fossil Fuels, No Nukes, Period
Every aspect of AI processing must run on clean energy—no coal, no gas, no nuclear. We don’t lack the right technology, just corporate commitment and accountability.
- Community Power
Listen to families living near proposed data centers and power sources and give them a say—they deserve transparency, pollution protection, and fair electricity rates that don't subsidize corporate energy consumption. - Transparency
Major AI companies are building more and bigger data centers without being fully transparent about issues like the electricity and water needed to run them. If these companies are to be good neighbors and take responsibility for the pollution generated from fossil fuels, they first need to be honest about the scope and scale of the problem.
Action Matters
Every time you call for renewable-powered AI, you're helping write the next chapter of both technology and climate progress. We have a great track record in driving the renewable energy future by getting Amazon and the telecoms to make historic corporate purchases of solar and wind. Now we need to do the same for AI. Amazon, Meta, Google (Alphabet), and Microsoft have all made massive renewable energy purchases in the past, with public pressure, they will do so again.
If tech giants insist on pushing AI forward, let's make sure we direct it toward the just and sustainable future we all deserve.
Ready to reshape how AI technology serves our planet’s climate and our communities? All year long, stay tuned for our “Dirty Data: Stop Big AI from polluting our climate & communities” campaign calls to action. Together, we got the entire telecoms industry to make massive renewable energy commitments – let’s do it again with AI.
