Gartner predicts this continued spike in electricity demand will result in higher power prices than usual over time. It'll also make it harder for utility providers to reduce their carbon emissions, meaning all this AI model training and operations may exacerbate climate change.

While some academics believe AI could help humans solve the climate crisis, the tech is causing energy and carbon emission problems in the meantime. Developing and using efficient computer hardware and renewable energy sources could help, though, as well as scheduling data centers to only operate at off-peak hours and building them in colder regions to reduce cooling costs.