- > Cover grid infrastructure costs. We will pay for 100% of the grid upgrades needed to interconnect our data centers, paid through increases to our monthly electricity charges. This includes the shares of these costs that would otherwise be passed onto consumers.
This is great, but do they have an actual example of something that would have been passed on to consumers? Or is it just a hypothetical?
In the location I’m familiar with, large infrastructure projects have to pay their own interconnection costs. Utilities are diverse across the country so I wouldn’t be surprised if there are differences, but in general I doubt there are many situations where utilities were going to raise consumer’s monthly rates specifically to connect some large commercial infrastructure.
Maybe someone more familiar with these locations can provide more details, but I think this public promise is rather easy to make.
by unltdpower
7 subcomments
- "Committing to buying the glass to replace the window I broke in your shop to rob the place, you're welcome."
> Training a single frontier AI model will soon require gigawatts of power, and the US AI sector will need at least 50 gigawatts of capacity over the next several years.
These things are so hideously inefficient. All of you building these things for these people should be embarrassed and ashamed.
- We've moved past asking where the energy comes from or how our planet will survive this critical phase.
These days, it's about framing - every country is scrambling to up their game just to stay in power. The companies that are riding this wave are spending millions in marketing, lobbying and billions on consuming energy so that they can make trillions in valuation.
I am also an ardent user of AI - but sometimes I do feel guilty when I use so many tokens - because I know I am burning energy, and feeding part of this mission. If there is a solution, I would like to be a part of it.
- One of the potential upsides of AI in the USA is we'll bring down electrical prices compared to something like China. Power has to be abundantly plentiful and concentrated.
Maybe then, we could afford to smelt an ingot of aluminum in the USA.
Until then, I guess we're just sadly just burning coal to create cat memes. I hope Anthropic can lead the charge. Crypto was already a massive setback in terms of clean power, AI is already very dirty.
- Rather have the government tax these entities (great way to have the public support a VAT in this instance) than rely on their "benefactors" that have shown zero remorse in the societal destruction against the planet and humanity, but okay.
- Electricity price is a weird beast. Everyone has to pay the price of the most expensive electricity source (generally gas plants) that was recruited to respond to the power demand. It means that during a spike the electricity price can double or triple.
What I infer from Anthropic post is that they will estimate the energy price as if they weren't using it and pay the difference if their use upped the price.
- Wow, good job in doing the bare minimum?
"We will cover the cost of upgrading the electricity grid so we can use more energy" yeah. Of course you will. What?
- I see this as another OPEX expenditure that has to be factored into Anthropic’s (hypothetical) profitability, and am intrigued as to what this means in an industry that is becoming rife with CAPEX sinks…
- When they say "we" they're opposing this to "US ratepayers", not "our customers". Likely that this will appear on your Anthropic bill.
- Not a word about sustainable sources of energy or the long-term viability of this massive energy suck.
- This is all good and well wishes as long as investors are willing to pour money into the bubble. When the music stops is where we will see the true colors. Corporations are optimized to make money, governments should be optimized to protect people.
by DoctorOetker
2 subcomments
- Please do hang your datacenters in space so as not to piss away your waste heat in our rivers, soils or atmosphere.
Go to the bathroom upstairs, don't use our ecosystem as your latrines if you can direct it straight to the CMB.
by GregDavidson
0 subcomment
- Only train when the Sun shines.
- Surprised local power generation isn’t in the radar. Whether it’s solar, natural gas or others.
by daveshappy
0 subcomment
- I keep saying it, we need to ditch all the "old" styles of power generation YES ncluding green ones like Solar etc. We should all be pushing for SMRs!!!
- > projects will create hundreds of permanent jobs
See, the AI is gonna create jobs, not eliminate them lol. Now let us strip mine your hood G.
- If you're going to ruin the climate and prices for all kinds of stuff, the least you can do is bring your own nuclear power plant.
- Blah, blah, blah. prices will rise regardless and they know it
- > Cover grid infrastructure costs. We will pay for 100% of the grid upgrades needed to interconnect our data centers, paid through increases to our monthly electricity charges.
How does paying more monthly cover an infrastructure build out that requires up front capital?
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