Promise and Peril: Sustainability & the Rise of Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence (AI) could have profound beneficial impacts in a range of areas, including efforts to address climate change and other sustainability issues. 

At the same time, the growth of AI — and the infrastructure needed to support it — will create additional sustainability challenges. 

This paper explores the promise of AI in advancing climate and sustainability solutions across the economy (i.e., its “handprint”), the potential peril of its environmental impacts (i.e., its “footprint”), and offers strategic policy recommendations to maximize AI’s sustainability benefits while mitigating its environmental footprint.