We use our little friend everyday, whether that be asking a question, researching or talking about our relationship problems to it, and some can confidently say that it’s become their ‘go to’ hub for anything and everything, but do we know the impact that this is having on our global footprint.

I’d like to be clear that by no means am I a technophobe. At Carbon Neutral Group, we use data, analytics, and yes, even AI tools in our work. But as someone whose entire professional mission is built around honest accounting and helping businesses with a realistic approach to sustainability and  environmental impact, I have an obligation to say what the industry is largely whispering: AI has an enormous and largely unacknowledged carbon problem.

The hidden cost of chat

Every time you type a question into AI, whether you’re asking it to write an email, summarise a report, or check something, we are  triggering a huge amount of computation happening. This is all in real time, across powerful GPU groups in data hubs around the globe. I’m also not at all kidding too, when I say they are nothing like your laptop processors quietly working behind the scenes, these are large scale machines drawing a serious amount of power around the clock.

Each question to AI uses up to ten times the electricity of a standard Google search, yes ten times. Now you can imagine if hundreds of millions of queries are being fired at AI every single day, you would be multiplying that figure by the hundreds of millions. It’s safe to say that we are under no illusion that it stops here.  As you can see AI is dramatically developing and fast, so this will increasingly  grow in the years ahead.

The water that’s spilling

The server farms that power modern AI don’t just consume electricity, they generate an enormous amount of heat, and that heat evidently has to go somewhere. The answer in most cases is water. Evaporative cooling systems quietly drain local water supplies at scale, and the quantities involved are quite extraordinary.

Generating just 100 words of AI output can consume the equivalent of nearly a full bottle of water. Let’s just say something as simple as “Hi” can cost around 1.5 ounces of water. These figures sound trivial in isolation, but really shocking when multiplied by millions of interactions  by us, per hour, each day, in data centres that are often located in regions already under serious water stress.

I find it remarkable that we’ve built global frameworks to track Scope 1, 2, and 3 carbon emissions, yet the water consumed by digital infrastructure barely registers in most corporate ESG disclosures and I feel this is something we need to look into.

Accountability where are you

Here is what frustrates me the most as a  sustainability practitioner: we are finally living through a period of extraordinary corporate ambition around net zero targets. Thousands of organisations have made public commitments, with frameworks that have been built to hold them accountable, and yet, the AI tools those same organisations are now enthusiastically adopting sit largely outside those accounting frameworks. The emissions AI is creating are quite real. The water consumption is also real, but because they’re being absorbed into muddied supply chains, hidden in Scope 3 emissions of technology vendors, I ask myself are they even being accounted for.

AI and I are not having a moment

I am not arguing that we should abandon AI. This platform and the technology behind it has genuine potential to accelerate sustainability solutions and some of the most exciting work in environmental science is being powered by machine learning. But let’s get one thing straight, potential does not excuse a lack of accountability. The automotive industry hasn’t been given a pass on emissions because cars are useful to us everyday . The aviation industry isn’t exempted from carbon reporting because flying gets us around the globe. We measure,we set targets, and we drive innovation toward cleaner solutions. I feel like AI deserves exactly the same treatment with the same conscientiousness.

What sustainability consultancies need to do

The sustainability community needs to treat the AI energy and water consumption it uses as an issue. Technology businesses must be required to disclose the energy and water intensity of their AI products with the same granularity we expect from manufacturers reporting on product emissions. “AI-powered” can no longer be an advertising claim without an accompanying environmental footnote I think.

Also businesses who use AI whether that be within a team software or individual usage by team members for work purposes should be accounted for and must be included in Scope 3 accounting. If you’re outsourcing computation to a cloud AI provider lets say, that consumption belongs in your organisational footprint. There is no logical argument to why it shouldn’t be accounted for.

Moment of honesty

We have built our reputation I should hope anyway, on  honest accounting. We measure things that are inconvenient at times, we report on numbers that might be uncomfortable and we hold businesses to the same standards we apply to ourselves.

AI isn’t off on its travels  around South East Asia, it’s sticking around. This means the energy and water costs of AI are real, it’s growing, and it’s currently flying under the radar of the framework we’ve worked so hard to build as experts in the sector.

Let’s bring it to light.

(Image: Pexels.com_Angel Rkaoz)

The post The vampire in AI: Why AI’s energy sucking should have every sustainability leader worried at night first appeared on ESG Foundation.

The post The vampire in AI: Why AI’s energy sucking should have every sustainability leader worried at night appeared first on ESG Foundation.

When it comes down to industry sectors, retail and fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies are currently leading the way to net zero readiness, in comparison to logistics and hospitality industries, who for now remain behind.

The research assessed the hospitality, FMCG, manufacturing, logistics and retail sectors, comparing each industry’s knowledge and progress in areas such as emissions measurement, science-based target setting, supply-chain engagement and the implementation of decarbonisation strategies.

The top five industries which are on a good pathway to net zero:

• Retail and FMCG: Strongest so far in strategic plans and governance

• Manufacturing: They have progress where technology and investment align, which is beneficial

• Logistics and Hospitality: These two industries are most in need of accelerated support and coordinated action

The Retail and FMCG sectors emerged as the most strategically advanced. This may be driven largely by multinational brands with formal science-based targets, established ESG governance, along with increasing pressure from investors and consumers where there isl a huge demand for sustainable products but also evidently pressures of the rising cost of those products.

George Curtis, CEO of Carbon Neutral Group says: “To continue their progression in 2026, Retail and FMCG brands need to pair sustainability with quality, convenience, value, and trust, it’s crucial that C-suite members keep their sustainability commitments they have promised consumers throughout, to keep that reliability and trust going.“

Large retailers have also made significant progress in reducing operational emissions through renewable energy procurement, energy efficiency and fleet electrification. When it comes down to it, the FMCG companies are leveraging supply-chain engagement to accelerate emission reductions. However, these sectors will still face challenges in translating top-level commitments into consistent supplier-level action, particularly among small and medium-sized businesses.

When reviewing reports, Carbon Neutral Group, found that the manufacturing sector showed moderate to high readiness, particularly among energy-intensive producers investing in renewables, electrification and efficiency upgrades.

Where capital and infrastructure is available, manufacturers are demonstrating tangible emissions reductions, meaning the industry’s overall pace is constrained by high upfront investment requirements and asset lifecycles.

George Curtis, CEO of Carbon Neutral Group continues: “Teaming up with a Carbon Consultancy, really helps industries that are lagging behind, it allows us to deeply understand the company’s emissions profile but really enables us to advise the business on quick wins to reduce their footprint whilst creating longer term plans. The longer term plans could range from, reviewing suppliers, products and services and the associated footprint, through to how the business travels and commutes.  Any changes in these areas will need a longer time to implement and for the business to feel the benefits of change“.

Despite the logistics industry critical role in global supply chains, it remains one of the least net-zero-ready sectors. While awareness is rising and pilot projects around alternative fuels and efficiency are increasing, it seems adoption is inconsistent and emissions tracking remains a little broken.

The Hospitality sector ranked lowest overall in being net zero ready. Although the sector’s awareness is improving and industry bodies are developing shared roadmaps, most operators, particularly smaller venues, really lack data, capital and the expertise required to implement comprehensive decarbonisation strategies.

Food waste, building energy use and supply-chain emissions are key challenges that they are currently facing.

George Curtis continues: “This leads to why it is so important to have regular reviews of your energy use, plan for the seasonal changes and look at ways, where possible, on how you can make reductions in this area. Supply chain emissions can be a real headache for businesses. A suggestion that we tend to make is, make the change when onboarding any new supplier. Asking for carbon information on the products/services that are being bought allows for the carbon footprint for  that supplier to be calculated.  This can be done whilst reviewing the current suppliers, their carbon audits and asking them for their carbon plans for their products and services.“

Achieving net zero requires more than aspirational targets, it demands credible, measurable strategies that drive real reductions. Too often, organisations default to offsetting without understanding the deeper changes they need to make, this can risk confusing stakeholders and slowing down their net zero progress.

For more information, visit: https://www.carbonneutralgroup.co.uk/

Shadi Shadlou: shadi@carbonneutralgroup.com

About Carbon Neutral Group:

Carbon Neutral Group is one of the UK’s fastest-growing carbon neutral and sustainability consultancies.  With clients vary from NHS Trusts and NHS organisations to leading Digital Marketing Agencies, Architects and Freight & logistics businesses.  Carbon Neutral Group understands that every business has its unique challenges, and they use their experience to help solve and create a realistic journey to Net Zero that is conscious of time and financial budgets.

Carbon reduction plans are created following data that is from a carbon audit.  From this we can then understand the clients issues and look to create ways to reduce their clients carbon footprint.  No two carbon journeys are the same so we look to create a tailored solution.  This uses strategic planning whilst combining it with clients capabilities to help them to transition to a sustainable, carbon-neutral future.  As a team, they bring years’ worth of consultancy experience to the market which means that they can help businesses who are at any point in their journey to Net Zero.

(Image: Pexels.com)

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