Letter from Nikkei Asia's editor: AI's looming climate cost

Hello from Tokyo. If someone told you that artificial intelligence leaves a big carbon footprint and has a serious impact on climate change, what images would come to mind? Your imagination might stray to the realm of science fiction and a world where AI-powered robots have become so humanlike that they actually breathe just like us -- exhaling carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

But we're not talking about some remote sci-fi future -- AI is already taking a significant toll on the environment. This week's Big Story examines the environmental costs of the ongoing generative AI boom. AI-powered programs require a lot of electricity: Generating just one AI image could use as much energy as 522 smartphone charges, and generating 1,000 images could emit as much CO2 as driving 4.1 miles in an average gasoline-powered passenger vehicle.

Particularly energy hungry are the data centers needed to train and run AI. Tech titans like Amazon are building these facilities around the world, attracting huge amounts of investment money. These centers consume massive amounts of electricity and water, and there is growing pressure to find ways to power them using renewable energy sources to mitigate the environmental impact.

Speaking of energy-hungry businesses, Japan's convenience stores, which are typically open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, have long been a major target for criticism. When I was a reporter, I was often drawn to a brightly lit convenience store near my home after working past midnight. I recall hearing once that the stores' bright lights are partly to deter crime.

As large as Japan's konbini business has grown, it now faces many challenges, and reducing the industry's environmental impact is just one of them. Grappling