As the world meets at the UN Climate Change Conference in Baku, stories about the unsustainability of the data centres that power artificial intelligence are making headlines every day. This column introduces the concept of an ‘eco-political economy of AI’, covering each step from mining materials to processing data to digital waste. Only by examining the complexities of the AI production chain can we begin to understand the true environmental impact of these technologies.
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An eco-political economy of AI to understand the complexities of its environmental costs