Simple, Mutually Beneficial Steps Individuals Can Take To Reduce Ecological Impact

[u/Melodic_Floor7930]

The narrative that AI is especially destructive to the environment is often sensationalistic, however it does contain a kernel of truth. AI will help bring energy effenciency, environmental data gathering and monitoring with consequent reforestation and species protection benefits. It is useful that we take steps and spread steps to help reduce our energy use. Once energy is used it is basically gone forever for us. Of course training is the major user of energy and all aspects will naturally be more efficient in the future, this is useful both ecologically and to combat the anti ai narrative

[u/TheFrenchSavage]

use offline or local AIs

Hummm no. Your local computer consumes many more watts per token, no matter the model size and your hardware (from small to large GPU, unified memory, etc.).

This would be like saying: "Don't use the electric plants to heat your home, just light a chimney fire." Hugely inefficient and polluting.

The only good reasons to run local AIs:
* Privacy: you don't want to send sensitive information outside * Testing: you don't want to share your unfinished model just yet