MIT Technology Review Releases In-Depth Reporting Package: Power Hungry: AI and our energy future – PR Newswire

Searching for your content…
In-Language News
Contact Us
888-776-0942
from 8 AM – 10 PM ET
May 20, 2025, 18:11 ET
Share this article
New reporting that reveals the growing demands of AI’s energy use and its climate impact.
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., May 20, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — MIT Technology Review launched today Power Hungry: AI and our energy future, a first-of-its-kind content package that tells a story you haven’t yet heard. It’s well documented that AI is a power-hungry technology. But there has been far less reporting on the extent of that hunger, how much its appetite is set to grow in the coming years, where that power will come from, and who will pay for it.
For the past six months, MIT Technology Review’s team of expert reporters and editors have worked to answer those questions. The result is an unprecedented look at the state of AI’s energy and resource usage, where it is now, where it is headed in the years to come, and why we have to get it right.
At the centerpiece of this new content package is a groundbreaking line of reporting into the demands of inference—the way human beings interact with AI when we make text queries or ask AI to come up with new images or create videos. Experts say inference is set to eclipse the already massive amount of energy required to train new AI models. We were so startled by what we learned reporting this story that we also put together a brief on everything you need to know about estimating AI’s energy and emissions burden.
And then we went out into the world to see the effects of this hunger. Our in-depth reporting takes you into the deserts of Nevada, where data centers in an industrial park the size of Detroit demand ever more water to keep their processors cool and running. In Louisiana, where Meta plans its largest-ever data center, we expose the dirty secret that will fuel its AI ambitions—along with those of many others. Separately, we have a look at why the clean energy promise of powering AI data centers with nuclear energy will long remain elusive.
Finally, we also look at the reasons to be optimistic, and examine why future AI systems could be far less energy intensive than today’s.
Power Hungry: AI and our energy future is now available at technologyreview.com/energy-ai.
Readers can subscribe to access the full series, every story on technologyreview.com, as well as MIT Technology Review’s exclusive Insider’s Panel from our latest EmTechAI conference for a deeper understanding of the future.
Members of the press may obtain additional information and access by emailing [email protected].
About MIT Technology Review
Founded at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1899, MIT Technology Review is the world’s leading authority on technology and its influence. Through award-winning journalism and premium events, we break down complex innovations and analyze their commercial, social, and political impact. From AI and biotech to climate tech and computing, we deliver trusted insights and expert analysis, empowering a global audience to navigate the emerging technologies shaping our future.
We are the destination for those seeking to better understand where technology is headed next. Subscribe. Attend. Follow: Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Reddit.
Media Contact:
MIT Technology Review [email protected] 
SOURCE MIT Technology Review
This week, the world’s leading minds in AI will gather on MIT’s iconic campus for EmTech AI (formerly EmTech Digital), MIT Technology Review’s…
The complete agenda for EmTech AI 2025 (formerly EmTech Digital) is here, unveiling visionary speakers, breakthrough sessions, cutting-edge research, …
Computer & Electronics
Oil & Energy
Utilities
Artificial Intelligence
Do not sell or share my personal information:

source
This is a newsfeed from leading technology publications. No additional editorial review has been performed before posting.

Continue Your AI Leadership Journey

Turn insight into action with CDO TIMES.

CDO TIMES helps executives move from AI awareness to AI execution through practical frameworks, tools, executive research, and advisory support.

Explore the Frameworks

Continue with Enterprise AI 2030, HI + AI = ECI, AI Governance, and executive playbooks.

Explore Enterprise AI 2030 →

Use the Free Tools

Assess readiness, estimate AI ROI, model AI costs, and prioritize AI initiatives.

Open Executive Tools →

Read the Book

Explore the HI + AI = ECI leadership model in The AI-Ready Leader.

Order The AI-Ready Leader →

Go deeper with CDO TIMES Pro.

Unlock premium research, executive playbooks, templates, advanced tools, and member-only briefings.

Join CDO TIMES Pro

Need executive help?

Explore advisory, workshops, fractional CIO/CDO/CISO/CAIO support, and AI operating model design.

Explore Advisory →

Attend executive events

Join leadership forums, executive dinners, webinars, and strategic AI briefings.

View Events →

Build AI capability

Use CDO TIMES Academy for executive learning, AI leadership development, and implementation training.

Explore Academy →

Leave a Reply