Artificial Intelligence or Intelligence Artificially?

“Data centres are taking over our jobs! Artificial intelligence is the apex of humanity! Beep boop—we are AI robots, and we are taking over you humans!” Insert robotic voice.

The views surrounding the sudden emergence of artificial intelligence have been diverse, apocalyptic and, at times, comedic. Some see AI as humanity’s greatest invention, while others believe it represents the beginning of our decline. Regardless of where one stands, AI has quickly become the influential “kid on the block.” Yet beneath the excitement, fear and humour lies a question that deserves attention: what is this technological revolution costing the environment? From an economic standpoint, AI is the newest cash cow in the global market. Governments and investors praise it as a driver of innovation and economic stability. Socially, it writes captions, edits videos and shapes how we present ourselves online. Politically, it is the newest adviser in the room, producing research, drafting speeches and proposing solutions for elected officials.

Even religious communities use AI to study sacred texts, prepare sermons and answer theological questions. AI has become socially aware, politically influential, religiously conversant and economically sophisticated.

Yet, one perspective is still pushed aside, either because of convenience, profit or intentional dissonance: the environmental perspective.

Artificial intelligence, however, does not operate in an invisible, harmless digital universe. Every question asked, image generated and document summarized depends on physical infrastructure. Servers must run, data centres must be constructed, computer chips must be manufactured, and electricity must be supplied, with freshwater in surrounding areas required to cool the equipment. According to the International Energy Agency, data centres consumed approximately 415 terawatt-hours of electricity in 2024 about 1.5 per cent of global electricity consumption. That demand could more than double by 2030, with AI serving as the principal driver (IEA, 2025). This statistic reveals where my concern begins. 

Data centres are presented as symbols of progress, but progress should not be measured only by speed, profit or technological capability. It should also be measured by sustainability, equity and long-term environmental security. When freshwater is used to cool data-centre equipment in communities facing water stress, society must ask whose needs are being prioritized. Should a technological system compete with communities, agriculture and ecosystems for a resource as essential as water?

The environmental cost extends beyond water. Data centres require land, concrete, steel, minerals and energy-intensive materials. Their electricity demand can pressure grids, particularly in countries that still depend on fossil fuels. There is also the ecological cost of semiconductor manufacturing, replacing outdated equipment and managing electronic waste. AI may appear clean on a screen, but behind that screen exists an industrial system with a real environmental footprint.

This does not mean AI is harmful. It can support climate modeling, disaster forecasting, precision agriculture, energy efficiency and environmental monitoring. In disaster forecasting, Google DeepMind’s GraphCast produced 10-day global weather forecasts in under one minute and outperformed a leading conventional forecasting system on more than 90 per cent of the targets assessed, including forecasts involving tropical cyclones and extreme temperatures (Lam et al., 2023). This is just one potential way that this technology is contributing positively to efficient environmental management. Additionally, governments can use it to identify illegal deforestation, predict extreme weather, improve transportation systems and strengthen renewable-energy networks. For developing countries and small island states, these tools could improve resilience and support decision-making. However, benefits do not remove responsibility. A technology capable of helping the environment can still damage it when developed without limits. The real problem is not artificial intelligence itself, but the weakness of the environmental governance surrounding its expansion. Have we become so artificial in our own intellectual reasoning that we can confidently embrace this technology without placing limits on its artificial intellect? We celebrate what AI produces but rarely ask what it consumes. We admire its speed but ignore the energy behind it. We enjoy its convenience but overlook the communities and ecosystems that may bear its hidden costs. We use AI to overcome our limitations as biological beings while disregarding other living beings whose habitats and resources may be diminished by the infrastructure supporting it.

Governments must move beyond speeches and voluntary promises. No data centre should receive planning approval, public funding or tax incentives without disclosing its electricity demand, water consumption, emissions, waste and impact on communities. Environmental assessments should be mandatory, renewable energy should be prioritized and affected citizens should have a meaningful voice before projects are approved. Environmentalists and policymakers have repeated many of these recommendations, yet political action continues to lag behind technological expansion. As the saying goes, “Talk is cheap.” I would add that inaction is cheaper—at least until communities and ecosystems are forced to pay the real price.

Artificial intelligence may be one of humanity’s greatest achievements, but greatness without responsibility can become destruction. The question is not whether AI will continue to develop. It will. The real question is whether humanity will govern it wisely. If AI is truly intelligent, then the systems supporting it (we) must not be environmentally foolish. So, I ask again: is it really artificial intelligence, or are we witnessing the artificiality of our own intelligence?

REFERENCES

IEA (2025), Energy and AI, IEA, Paris https://www.iea.org/reports/energy-and-ai, Licence: CC BY 4.0

Lam, R., Sanchez-Gonzalez, A., Willson, M., Wirnsberger, P., Fortunato, M., Alet, F., ... & Battaglia, P. (2023). Learning skillful medium-range global weather forecasting. Science, 382(6677), 1416-1421.

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Jibade Delice is an environmental professional, climate policy advocate, and sustainability strategist committed to advancing climate resilience in Small Island Developing States (SIDS), particularly in the Caribbean. His goal is to help shape evidence-based policies that promote sustainable development and environmental resilience. He holds a Bachelor of Environmental Science/Studies (Honours) from Trent University.