logo
episode-header-image
Aug 2021
21m 2s

Brainstorm

Financial Times
About this episode

In this episode of Tech Tonic, we ask whether AI's potential in the fight against the climate crisis justifies the massive amounts of energy it takes to run these systems. The computing power required to train AI concerns some researchers, who have built a calculator to count the tech's carbon footprint. But AI advances have also opened new avenues to fight climate change, by helping Arctic scientists, weather modellers, and green energy gurus. This week the FT’s innovation editor John Thornhill and environment and clean energy correspondent Leslie Hook, debate AI’s climate effects. We also hear from Jennifer Jackson, a molecular biologist at the British Antarctic Survey, and Sasha Luccioni, an AI researcher at Mila research institute in Quebec. 


Alice Fordham is the senior producer. Josh Gabert Doyon is the assistant producer. Oluwakemi Aladesuyi and Liam Nolan are the development producers. Sound design and mixing by Breen Turner. Cheryl Brumley is the executive producer for this series. Hydrophonic recordings kindly supplied by Ellen White at the University of Southampton. 


Review clips: Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, Sonos, Samsung, Google, Rogers, Universal Pictures, Three, NBC, Nintendo.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Oct 28
FT Weekend Fest: Tech to save democracy
The FT’s John Thornhill speaks to Audrey Tang, former Taiwanese minister of digital affairs, and Matthew Rycroft, a former UK civil servant, about how technology can be used to facilitate participatory democracy — giving citizens a greater role in proposing and drafting laws. Cou ... Show More
26m 1s
Oct 14
FT Weekend Fest: Could AI make us happier?
Could AI help us understand ourselves and each other better? Writer and philosopher Alain de Botton speaks to the FT’s Madhumita Murgia about the challenges we face navigating human relationships, and how AI might be able to help. Recorded live at the FT Weekend Festival.Tech Ton ... Show More
30m 24s
Sep 30
FT Weekend Fest: How AI is really changing jobs
Murad Ahmed speaks to FT journalist Sarah O’Connor about her new book ‘We Are Not Machines’, which explores the impact AI is already having on workplaces. They discuss how Swedish miners dealt with the introduction of AI-powered vehicles, and how Czech translators found AI steali ... Show More
31m 30s
Recommended Episodes
Dec 2024
What is the environmental cost of AI search?
As tech companies increase their AI production, the environmental costs are coming to light. What are the resources fuelling the AI revolution? And how does AI impact the tech industry’s climate goals? In this episode: Sophie Bushwick (@sophiebushwick), New Scientist Senior Tech ... Show More
16m 35s
Sep 2024
The TED AI Show: Can AI predict (and control) the weather? w/ Dion Harris and Tapio Schneider
Cutting-edge technology and vast amounts of data are revolutionizing climate modeling with unprecedented accuracy. So could AI be the crystal ball we need to predict —and even control— Earth's climate? Bilawal sits with Dion Harris, the head of data center product marketing at NV ... Show More
36m 49s
Sep 2024
Can AI predict (and control) the weather? w/ Dion Harris and Tapio Schneider
Cutting-edge technology and vast amounts of data are revolutionizing climate modeling with unprecedented accuracy. So could AI be the crystal ball we need to predict — and even control — Earth's climate? Bilawal sits with Dion Harris, the head of data center product marketing at ... Show More
36m 49s
Oct 2021
Smart tech and climate change
Could AI be used to help fight against climate change? 
6m 12s
Nov 2023
Can AI help solve the climate crisis? | Sims Witherspoon
“AI can be a transformational tool in our fight against climate change," says Sims Witherspoon, a leader at the AI research lab Google DeepMind. Using wind power as her case study, she explains how powerful neural networks can help us better predict Earth's changing ecosystems an ... Show More
15m 5s
Sep 2023
Can AI help solve the climate crisis? | Sims Witherspoon
"AI can be a transformational tool in our fight against climate change," says Sims Witherspoon, a leader at the AI research lab Google DeepMind. Using wind power as her case study, she explains how powerful neural networks can help us better predict Earth's changing ecosystems an ... Show More
12m 36s
Mar 2024
ITIF's Daniel Castro on Energy-Efficient AI and Climate Change - Ep. 215
AI-driven change is in the air, as are concerns about the technology’s environmental impact. In this episode of NVIDIA’s AI Podcast, Daniel Castro, vice president of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation and director of its Center for Data Innovation, speaks with h ... Show More
33m 13s
Feb 2025
DeepSeek, weapons and climate? What’s on the table at the Paris AI summit?
From the shockwaves caused by DeepSeek’s launch, to fears of a new AI arms race, and the continued questions over the technology’s energy use, AI continues to throw up new challenges. As world leaders gather for the Paris AI summit, the Guardian’s global technology editor, Dan Mi ... Show More
16m 3s