UN chief Guterres urges AI firms to disclose environmental impact

At the London Climate Action Week on 23 June, United Nations Secretary‑General António Guterres launched an AI Environmental Transparency Initiative. He called on all major artificial‑intelligence companies to measure and publicly disclose the carbon emissions, water use and land footprint of the data‑centres that power AI, and to commit to powering those facilities with renewable electricity by 2030.

Guterres warned that AI data‑centres already consume about 1.5 % of global electricity (≈448 TWh in 2025) and could rise to nearly 3 % by 2030, using more power than all but five countries. Their water demand could meet the basic needs of the 1.3 billion people of sub‑Saharan Africa for a year, and their land use is also growing. He described the situation as “no more hidden costs” and urged companies to stop shifting the environmental burden onto the most vulnerable communities.

The UN highlighted a recent report showing AI’s power demand could reach 945 TWh annually by 2030 and that water and land impacts will double within four years. While acknowledging AI’s potential to aid climate solutions, Guterres stressed that honest accounting of its resource use is essential for sustainable development and for meeting global climate targets.