Google’s emissions up 51% as AI electricity demand derails efforts to go green

Google’s report also raises concerns that the evolution of AI may make future energy needs and emissions trajectories more difficult to predict. Photograph: Annegret Hilse/Reuters

Google’s carbon emissions have soared by 51% since 2019 as artificial intelligence hampers the tech company’s efforts to go green.

While the corporation has invested in renewable energy and carbon removal technology, it has failed to curb its scope 3 emissions, which are those further down the supply chain, and are in large part influenced by a growth in datacentre capacity required to power artificial intelligence.