Latest posts
Datacentre developers face calls to disclose effect on UK’s net emissions
Campaign groups write to technology secretary amid concerns that sites could double overall electricity demand Datacentre developers are facing pressure to reveal whether their projects will increase the UK’s net greenhouse gas emissions, amid concerns the sites could double national electricity demand. Campaign groups have written to the UK technology secretary, Liz Kendall, warning that…
New datacentres risk doubling Great Britain’s electricity use, regulator says
Ofgem says about 140 proposed projects, driven by AI use, could require more power than current peak demand The amount of power being sought by new datacentre projects in Great Britain would exceed the national current peak electricity consumption, according to an industry watchdog. Ofgem said about 140 proposed datacentre schemes, driven by use of…
AI boom has caused same CO2 emissions in 2025 as New York City, report claims
Study author says tech companies are reaping benefits of artificial intelligence age but society is left to pay cost The AI boom has caused as much carbon dioxide to be released into the atmosphere in 2025 as emitted by the whole of New York City, it has been claimed. The global environmental impact of the…
Datacentres demand huge amounts of electricity. Could they derail Australia’s net zero ambitions?
Banks of servers operating 24/7 generate massive amounts of heat, requiring power to run and cool them Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Sign up for climate and environment editor Adam Morton’s free Clear Air newsletter here Datacentre power demand in Australia could triple in five years and is forecast to exceed…
Anthropic announces $50bn plan for datacenter construction in US
AI startup behind Claude chatbot working with London-based Fluidstack on building vast new computing facilities Artificial intelligence company Anthropic announced a $50bn investment in computing infrastructure on Wednesday that will include new datacenters in Texas and New York. “We’re getting closer to AI that can accelerate scientific discovery and help solve complex problems in ways…
Angela Rayner hit with legal challenge over datacentre on green belt land
Exclusive: Campaigners complain no environmental assessment made for 90MW Buckinghamshire facility The deputy prime minister, Angela Rayner, has been hit with a legal challenge after she overruled a local council to approve a hyperscale datacentre on green belt land by the M25 in Buckinghamshire. Campaigners bringing the action are complaining that no environmental impact assessment…
OpenAI will not disclose GPT-5’s energy use. It could be higher than past models
Experts working to benchmark resource use of AI models say new version’s enhanced capabilities come at a steep cost In mid-2023, if a user asked OpenAI’s ChatGPT for a recipe for artichoke pasta or instructions on how to make a ritual offering to the ancient Canaanite deity Moloch, its response might have taken – very…