The hidden factor no-one talks about. Our amazing technology and achievements have so far been powered by sunlight sequestered over hundreds of millions of years. We need to stop polluting our atmosphere, but to have a hope of continuing with progress we need to replace fossil energy sources.
Excellent point. It’s not like fusion technologies have developed. We don’t have a warp drive. And money is being pulled away from science into AI, as if AI is our salvation, and will help us create a positive future. I haven’t seen AI have any spark of life or imagination. Have you?
No, but for me that's not the question. For me the question is will AI - at the moment LLMs - make the emissions problem better or worse. As demand for energy is growing exponentially to support LLM data centres, it seems likely LLMs will make the situation worse.
Yes, it will. But it also risks putting all of humanity’s hope into one basket. Innovation that shifts humanity off of fossil fuel is not being funded properly, despite what is perceived, despite X Prizes, and the like. That’s my concern.