AI & Climate

AI for Climate Action

AI is being deployed to help understand climate change, reduce emissions, and adapt to its effects. It's one of the most impactful applications of AI technology.

Climate Modeling

• AI improves weather and climate predictions
• Google's GraphCast predicts weather 10 days out more accurately than traditional models
• Better understanding of climate patterns and extreme events

Energy Optimization

Power Grids

AI balances electricity supply and demand, integrates renewable sources, and reduces waste.

Buildings

DeepMind reduced Google data center cooling energy by 40% using AI optimization.

Transportation

Route optimization, traffic management, and autonomous vehicles can reduce fuel consumption.

Environmental Monitoring

• Deforestation — Satellite imagery analysis to detect illegal logging
• Wildlife — Tracking endangered species, detecting poaching
• Pollution — Monitoring air and water quality
• Ocean health — Tracking coral reefs, marine life

Material Discovery

• AI finding new materials for batteries and solar cells
• Better carbon capture materials
• More efficient catalysts for green chemistry

AI's Carbon Footprint

The flip side: AI training consumes significant energy:

• Training GPT-4 used enormous amounts of electricity
• Data centers are growing rapidly
• Industry is working on more efficient architectures
• Many companies aim to run AI on renewable energy

Climate Tech Applications

• Precision agriculture — Reducing water and fertilizer use
• Carbon accounting — Tracking emissions across supply chains
• Disaster prediction — Early warning for floods, fires, storms
• Urban planning — Designing more sustainable cities