Biden pressed to address AI impact on climate change 

Climate and tech advocacy groups are pressing the Biden administration to address concerns about the potential impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on climate change.

In a Wednesday letter to President Biden, the groups highlighted two main concerns: how  generative AI tools may amplify the spread of false information about climate change, and how the “enormous energy requirements and widespread use of large language models can increase carbon emissions.”

“Our concerns about AI focus on its potential use to spread climate disinformation, and its vastly expanding energy use, both of which require basic transparency rules that are not included in the [executive order],” the groups wrote, referring to a wide-ranging executive order Biden signed on artificial intelligence in October.

The order included new standards for safety and directs federal agencies to accelerate the development of techniques in order to allow AI systems to be trained while preserving privacy of the data they’re trained on.  

The advocates wrote they were “disappointed that AI’s potential to worsen the climate change crisis” was not addressed as a risk associated with widespread use of AI in the executive order.  

“Unfounded hype from Silicon Valley says that AI can save the planet sometime in the future but research shows the opposite is actually occurring right now,” the groups wrote.

The letter also comes as Vice President Harris joined world leaders in Dubai for COP28, the United Nation’s Climate Change Conference.

“The recent EO from the Biden-Harris Administration directs the Secretary of Energy, National Climate Advisor, and others to work in collaboration with the private sector and members of academia to support development of AI tools to mitigate climate change risks. We request that this same task force consider how to ensure the AI boom does not contribute to the climate change crisis,” they wrote.  

The letter was signed by 17 groups, including Friends of the Earth, Accountable Tech and the Center for Countering Digital Hate.  

It was addressed to Biden, Harris, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Arati Prabhakar, Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Director Anton Porter and national climate adviser Ali Zaidi.