Student Takeover Season: The Sustainability Issues around Artificial Intelligence

In this student takeover episode of the Meliora Podcast from the Sustainability & Resilience Institute at the University of Southampton we explore Artificial intelligence (AI) and its sustainability. Host Hannah facilitates a debate among four colleagues. Louise and Lavin express concerns about AI's negative environmental impacts including high energy consumption, emissions, and contribution to e-waste. Conversely, Travis and Gabriella advocate for AI's potential in reaching the Sustainable Development Goals through efficient energy management, ability to predict extreme weather, and optimising production and consumption. They discuss AI's impact on transportation addressing concerns about job displacement alongside its benefits for traffic optimization and vehicle maintenance. Both parties acknowledge the importance of monitoring AI’s sustainability impact by establishing transparency in AI development and emissions generated. This transparency allows for more accurate comparisons between the pollution generated by AI and the pollution resulting from humans performing the same actions. The episode concludes by recognising AI's complex role in sustainability, emphasising the need for ongoing research and more comprehensive data to better understand its benefits and drawbacks.Episode team: Louise Brun, Hannah Feibusch, Gabriella Randall, Travis Arthur, Lavin-Ryan Naidu.This episode is part of the Student Takeover Season on the Meliora Podcast, and is a group project from the University of Southampton 'Global Sustainability Challenges' module.