Volume 55

Carbon Footprint of AI Data Centers: A Life Cycle Approach Alexandre d‘ORGEVAL, Edi ASSOUMOU, Valentina SESSA, Ilknur COLAK, Stuart SHEEHAN, Quentin AVENAS

Abstract

Data centers are energy-intensive infrastructures that generate, manage, and store information for our interconnected society. Models based on Artificial Intelligence (AI) such as ChatGPT are increasingly accessible, leading to significant energy consumption and associated carbon emissions.
Assessing the carbon footprint of AI data centers is essential for evaluating their environmental impact and, consequently, promoting responsible AI development and encouraging sustainable practices. In this work, we evaluate an AI data center’s carbon footprint using a life cycle assessment approach. Unlike existing literature, we analyze the entire data center architecture rather than solely focusing on the servers’ footprint. Additionally, we assess the impact of varying the electricity mix and extending the lifetime of servers, providing potentials for emission reductions.

Keywords Data center, Life Cycle Assessment, Carbon emission, Sustainable AI