AI: The dirty secret of artificial intelligence

Everyday activities like using a GPS to map out the best driving route or translating a document consume energy, water and mineral resources -- lots of it. These applications run in the cloud, a nebulous term for the millions of powerful computers in vast data centers worldwide. Mobile applications depend on legions of computers to store trillions of data and perform split-second operations (e.g. Estimates of the energy consumption of data centers range between 1-2% of total global consumption. All signs indicate that data center energy consumption is about to skyrocket.