Ex-Google CEO: “The natural limit of AI is not electricity, not chips.”
It appears that all companies these days are leveraging, investing, or using AI in some way. The Value of Artificial Intelligence – Facilitating repetitive tasks, increasing efficiency, solving extremely complex problems – Wall Street is salivating.
But it’s not AI, it’s something that’s close to having Silicon Valley Atwitter. That’s why some of the biggest companies, including Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta And so is Sam Altman’s opening Fighting AI talent. All the dominant high-tech players I want to be the first According to a book by Oxford University researcher Nick Bostrom, to build intelligence that “greatly surpasses human cognitive performance in virtually all areas of interest.” Superintelligence: Passes, dangers, strategies.
“Superintelligence is intelligence beyond the sum of all human beings,” says Eric Schmidt, former CEO and chairman of Google. I wrote it in a LinkedIn post Thursday. “It’s reasonable to predict that we will have a professional AI savant in all fields within five years. Now imagine their abilities and how they will change society and our daily lives.”
Schmidt spoke with Peter Diamandis and Dave Brandin New episodes of their Moonshot podcast We talked about the most complicated limiting factors that were released Thursday. Tip: It’s not money. It’s not a semiconductor either.
“The natural limitation of AI is electricity, not chips,” Schmidt said.
“The US is currently expected to need an additional 92 gigawatts of electricity to support the AI revolution. For reference, one gigawatt corresponds to almost one nuclear power plant. Currently, these facilities are essentially not built, and only two have been built in the last 30 years,” he added.
The Silicon Valley Giants are working on reviving and remodeling old power plants that will help drive AI needs. Microsoftone is Attacked a 20-year power purchase contract and Constellation energy The three-mile island, which was closed in 2019, was reopened and targeted for a renewal in 2028.
But even today, Microsoft is still using a lot of resources for AI. The latest environment report includes Windows Maker He said water use has increased Between 2021 and 2022, at 34%, or around 1.7 billion gallons, external experts were primarily linked to AI. and Researchers believe in global AI workloads By 2027, 42-6.6 billion cubic meters of water may be used. This is enough to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool of 1.7 million to 2.6 million. Put another way, it’s enough water to supply The whole population of Canada Over a year.
Openai CEO Sam Altman I said it last year Energy breakthroughs are “essential to the future of AI” (Altman says it’s worth it I personally invested in Helliona startup working on nuclear fusion, supporting the pilot factory in 2028. ) May, companies such as Microsoft and AMD He urged US senators to quickly track permissions To avoid wear of grids due to AI’s high energy demand. Critics Like Greenpeace At current rates, AI use risks derailing national and global climate targets.
“I don’t know what AI offers, and I certainly don’t know what super intelligence brings, but I know it’s getting faster,” Schmidt said. “We need to plan ahead to ensure that we have the energy needed to meet the many opportunities and challenges that AI places in front of us.”
You can see Schmidt’s full conversation about what Schmidt’s artificial super intelligence might actually look like. here.