Artificial Intelligence as a Catalyst for Sustainable Development
Artificial intelligence is transforming every aspect of life, expanding both our capabilities and our boundaries. At the same time, it presents new challenges for humanity, including concerns about safety, ethics, and environmental sustainability. Today, each neural network leaves a significant carbon footprint. However, with responsible management, AI has the potential to benefit the planet and become a cornerstone of a sustainable future economy. Panos Pardalos, Academic Supervisor of the Laboratory of Algorithms and Technologies for Network Analysis at the HSE Campus in Nizhny Novgorod, emphasised this point as he addressed the XXV Yasin (April) International Academic Conference on Economic and Social Development.
Today, the world is undergoing the Fourth Industrial Revolution, with artificial intelligence playing a central role. Much like electricity during the previous revolution, AI has emerged as the dominant force among all technologies. Many countries—including the USA, China, France, and Canada—have made the development of machine learning technologies a national priority, underscoring the importance and potential of this field.
Panos Pardalos
'We've spoken a lot about artificial intelligence today. It's remarkable how technology has extended our biological abilities—enhancing our vision, hearing, and cognitive capacity. I believe it's more accurate to call this technology "augmented" rather than "artificial" intelligence,’ says Panos Pardalos. ‘Telescopes, sensors, brain–computer interfaces, the metaverse, ChatGPT—these remarkable advancements all stem from complex mathematics and optimisation algorithms.'
According to Prof. Pardalos, the widespread adoption of technology and automation can, on one hand, bring significant benefits to the global economy and human well-being, but on the other hand, it may also pose new challenges in terms of resource usage. Thus, machine learning technologies involve enormous energy consumption.
'We often overlook the cost of technology. While machine learning algorithms possess immense computing power, they also demand equally immense amounts of electricity. The carbon footprint of training a single model is comparable to the emissions produced by several cars over their entire lifespan,' the researcher emphasised.
Other issues highlighted by the scientist include electronic waste recycling and the extraction of rare earth metals. While these metals are essential for the production of green technologies—such as electric car motors, wind turbines, and energy-efficient lighting—their extraction is environmentally harmful and unsustainable.
A 2023 study indicates that we have surpassed seven of the eight global safe Earth system boundaries, including hazardous emissions, biodiversity loss, climate change, and other critical issues. At the same time, Panos Pardalos believes that AI has the potential to be the key to a sustainable future economy.
'We already possess all the necessary technologies to build a sustainable economy, and with the right policies in place, AI could play a crucial role in facilitating this transition. The use of nuclear and renewable energy, waste recycling, digital twins for enterprises, the development of energy storage systems, and the creation of new materials—these are all achievable today. Of course, the cost of implementing new solutions is quite high. To fully leverage the opportunities AI offers, we need political will, along with educational and awareness-raising measures,' Prof. Pardalos concludes.
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