SUMMARY
This report by The Shift Project warns of the unsustainable trajectory of the development of artificial intelligence (AI) and data centers, whose carbon footprint is growing at a rate incompatible with European and global climate objectives. In particular, the massive spread of generative AI tools is stimulating a self-perpetuating cycle of increasing computing capacity and usage, amplifying the pressure on energy infrastructures. Even with a decarbonized electricity mix, carbon neutrality targets for 2050 are unattainable without a cap on data center consumption (around 40 TWh in 2050 for France). All the more so as the deployment model, which is dominated by American players, accentuates Europe's energy and digital vulnerability.
The report calls for real digital consumption and emissions to be measured and made transparent; for existing services to be optimized without increasing volumes (to avoid rebound effects); for the industry to be collectively reorganized towards digital sobriety, by integrating carbon compatibility criteria into all investment decisions; and for AI solutions to be eco-designed, with priority given to truly low-carbon uses.
The Shift Project calls for AI to be set on a trajectory compatible with physical constraints, and for an informed public debate on its role in the energy transition. The report argues for European strategic autonomy and selective, frugal use of digital technology to preserve long-term energy sustainability.
Keywords: data centers, decarbonation, geopolitical dependency, eco-design, electricity, carbon footprint, energy, technological frugality, GenAI, governance, frugal AI, artificial intelligence, carbon neutrality, digital sobriety, energy transition, The Shift Project, Europe, France.
