世界经济论坛-平衡挑战与机遇

Artificial Intelligence’s Energy Paradox: Balancing Challenges and OpportunitiesW H I T E P A P E RJ A N U A R Y 2 0 2 5In collaboration with AccentureTransformation of Industries in the Age of AIAI Governance AllianceImages: Getty ImagesDisclaimer This document is published by the World Economic Forum as a contribution to a project, insight area or interaction. The findings, interpretations and conclusions expressed herein are a result of a collaborative process facilitated and endorsed by the World Economic Forum but whose results do not necessarily represent the views of the World Economic Forum, nor the entirety of its Members, Partners or other stakeholders.© 2025 World Economic Forum. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system.ContentsReading guide 3Foreword 4Executive summary 5Introduction 61 Electricity consumption of AI 71.1 The AI life cycle 71.2 The role of data centres 81.3 Opportunities to reduce AI system electricity consumption 92 AI-enabled energy transition 112.1 Non-exhaustive example opportunities for AI-enabled 11 electricity reduction 2.2 Sample use cases 123 Primary challenges and ecosystem enablers 143.1 Infrastructure challenges 143.2 Environmental challenges 143.3 Overview of ecosystem enablers 153.4 Regulatory and policy enablers 163.5 Financial incentive enablers 163.6 Technological innovation enablers 173.7 Market development enablers 174 Future outlook of AI energy impact 184.1 The deployment and collaboration landscape 184.2 AI and energy – 2024 to 2025 outlook 22Conclusion 23Contributors 24Endnotes 26Artificial Intelligence’s Energy Paradox: Balancing Challenges and Opportunities2Reading guideThe World Economic Forum’s AI Transformation of Industries initiative seeks to catalyse responsible industry transformation by exploring the strategic implications, opportunities and challenges of promoting artificial intelligence (AI)-driven innovation across business and operating models.This white paper series explores the transformative role of AI across industries. It provides insights through both broad analyses and in-depth explorations of industry-specific and regional deep dives. The series includes:As AI continues to evolve at an unprecedented pace, each paper in this series captures a unique perspective on AI – including a detailed snapshot of the landscape at the time of writing. Recognizing that ongoing shifts and advancements are already in motion, the aim is to continuously deepen and update the understanding of AI’s implications and applications through collaboration with the community of World Economic Forum partners and stakeholders engaged in AI strategy and implementation across organizations.Together, these papers offer a comprehensive view of AI’s current development and adoption, as well as a view of its future potential impact. Each paper can b