AI’s soaring energy demand and regulation push spark debate in Denmark

Rapid growth of artificial‑intelligence tools is prompting calls for tighter governance in Denmark and beyond. The Danish press argues that AI must be harnessed responsibly, with clear rules on transparency, human oversight and cross‑border cooperation, warning that unchecked deployment could undermine democratic institutions.

A United Nations report highlighted AI’s massive electricity consumption, estimating that global AI use now draws as much power as Belgium and Finland combined. Each user prompt consumes about 0.42 watt‑hours—roughly the energy of a 10‑watt LED lamp for a few minutes. With ChatGPT handling around 2.5 billion prompts daily, the annual demand reaches 383 gigawatt‑hours, enough to power nearly three million people in sub‑Saharan Africa for a year. Researchers, citing MIT Technology Review, used the open‑source Hugging Face platform and measurements of Meta’s Llama model to show that generating a single text answer can require up to 6 kilojoules of energy. The lack of detailed disclosures from major AI firms complicates precise accounting, underscoring the need for transparent reporting and policy measures.