AI could help unlock more oil — and emissions
Summary
A new study finds that artificial intelligence (AI) may lead to more oil and natural gas production, which could increase global greenhouse gas emissions more than the emission reductions AI helps achieve by improving renewable energy. The study shows AI’s use in fossil fuel industries might cause a net rise in emissions under many scenarios.Key Facts
- AI can help find new oil and gas fields and improve extraction from existing ones.
- The study estimates AI-related fossil fuel production could increase emissions by 1% to 5% of the global energy sector’s 2024 emissions.
- These additional emissions could be 3 to 13 times higher than emissions from data centers running AI.
- The research was led by Holly and Will Alpine with Purdue University and published in a Nature journal in 2024.
- Oil companies like Chevron, ExxonMobil, and Aramco are already using AI to boost production.
- AI also benefits renewable energy by improving forecasting and operations, but fossil fuel gains may overshadow these benefits.
- The American Petroleum Institute disagrees that increasing oil production and lowering emissions conflict.
- The study used a global economic model to show emissions dropped only when AI did not increase fossil fuel productivity.
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