#14 Minds & Machines: The Environmental impact of AI, OpenAI's new models cost how much?!, Midjourney intro walkthrough
Plus, AI recipes, journaling prompts and autumn equinox celebrations
Image generated on Midjourney
Hi, how are you?
I hope you had a good summer.
Welcome to this slightly later edition.
I got back from holiday on Tuesday and went straight into delivering my talk at the Federation of Small Businesses in Wales on Wednesday morning. So I didn’t have enough time to put this together for Thursday.
I’ve gone for a slightly longer article in this edition. I’ve been planning it for a while.
I talk about the environmental impact of AI in every talk/workshop I deliver, but I wanted to dig deeper. So, I spent several days reading papers and articles to try and get a better overview of the situation.
The topic certainly isn’t clear-cut, but I’ve included key stats. I’ve also offered up some practical tips. After all, the small steps we take can have a big impact.
I hope you find it helpful.
One more thing: if you have time tomorrow, come and join the free AI in PR webinar hosted by the lovely people at Bristol PR agency, Purple Fish. I’ll be speaking on the panel and I can’t wait. It’s 9.30-10.30 am.
What’s inside this edition:
🤖 AI News and Views
Gen-AI’s impact on the environment
Introduction to Midjourney walkthrough
Open AI’s upcoming models cost how much?!
💡 Prompting tip
Prompt with personas rather than tone
💡 AI for life
Food Mood by Google AI
💛 The Human Element
Poem for Autumn wellbeing
Autumn Equinox circle
🤖 AI News & Views
AI tools, techniques and discoveries to help you with your content creation
What’s the environmental impact of AI and what can we do about it?
AI tools have many benefits for businesses and content creators. But there’s a downside to these tools that’s often left unmentioned: the environmental impact.
As part of my mission to help people use Gen-AI tools wisely and well, I talk about the environmental impact in all of my workshops.
So, I thought I’d share some of my findings – and three practical actions here too.
Three ways AI impacts the environment
There are three key ways that generative AI negatively impacts the environment: the training of the models, the use of the models and the making of the hardware.
Let’s look at these individually.
1. The impact of training AI models
As you might expect, it takes huge amounts of energy to train Gen-AI models like ChatGPT.
According to research from the University of Washington, training a single large language model like ChatGPT-3 can use 10 gigawatt-hour (GWh). “This is, on average, roughly equivalent to the yearly electricity consumption of over 1,000 U.S. households”.
Bear in mind, we’re now working with ChatGPT-4o, which is bigger. So, we could be looking at even more power.
GenAI models use a lot of water too
Power isn’t the only concern. Training and running AI models also requires huge amounts of water. Primarily to keep the huge server rooms cool.
In the research paper “Making AI Less "Thirsty”, researchers say: “training GPT-3 in Microsoft's state-of-the-art U.S. data centers can consume a total of 5.4 million liters of water.”
That’s a lot.
2. Using AI models
Unsurprisingly, the ongoing use of Gen-AI tools also has a cost. In fact, NVIDIA estimates that user queries make up 80-90% of the total energy used by Gen-AI systems during their lifetime.
And, according to the very detailed Towards Data Science article by Kasper Groes Albin Ludvigsen, ChatGPT could consume as much electricity as 175,000 people in just one month. Wow.
What about the water usage here?
Well, that’s fairly hefty too.
Research paper ,“Making AI Less "Thirsty”, suggests that 10-50 prompts on GPT-3 (ChatGPT’s predecessor) consumes 500ml of water, depending on when and where it’s deployed.
3. The environmental impact of making AI hardware
According to a study from 2011, “70% of the energy a typical laptop will consume during its life span is used in manufacturing the computer”.
So, it’s probably safe to assume the complex GPUs powering Gen-AI models are much higher than a laptop.
We also know that today’s AI giants are using more data centres and computing infrastructure than ever before.
Recent research from the MIT Climate and Sustainability Consortium, states that in the third quarter of 2023, Microsoft and Meta each bought three times more NVIDIA graphics processing units (GPUs) than Amazon and Google, which acquired 50,000 units each (Norem, 2023).
That’s a lot of hardware – and a lot of resources and power used to make them.
So, what can we do to help minimise the impact of Gen-AI?
Well, a lot of work has to happen upstream. The tech giants need to do their bit and legislation like the EU AI Act could help too.
But here are three practical things us business leaders and individuals can do now.
1. Use or fine-tune existing models
As we’ve seen, training and creating new models uses a lot of energy. So, if your company wants to train a generative model on your own content, it’s much more energy-efficient to fine-tune an existing model.
As the Harvard Business Review states: “Fine-tuning and prompt training on specific content domains consume much less energy than training new large models from scratch. It can also provide more value to many businesses than generically-trained models”.
2. Check the energy sources of your cloud provider or data centres
Be picky about your cloud provider. You can reduce carbon emissions by choosing providers that use environmentally-friendly power resources.
For example, a model trained and operated in the US might use fossil fuels, whereas in the Netherlands it’s likely to use more sustainable energy sources.
Recently, Google created more sustainable data centres in the Netherlands and has committed to 24/7 carbon-free energy by 2030.
3. Learn to use Gen-AI models well
If every inquiry we make has an impact, learning to use Gen-AI tools well matters.
If we all craft effective prompts for tools like ChatGPT or Midjourney, we won’t need to try over and over again to get a good result.
In the same way, if we fully understand Gen-AI tools, we’ll know when to use which ones. And when it’s wiser to avoid them altogether.
Last, but not least, if we combine AI and human intelligence, we’ll use AI models more resourcefully and generate valuable results – first time, every time.
There are many considerations when using Gen-AI models. Ethics, legal considerations, societal impact and more. But I believe we have to consider sustainability too.
After all, we could have the most innovative AI tools possible, but if we don’t have a healthy planet to live on, they won’t be much use.
💡 How I can help you use AI models wisely and well
I offer a range of AI training/support for marketers and business founders - online or in-person:
A one-hour talk – this can be an introduction to AI, or cover a specialist topic.
Half-day AI copywriting training – a hands-on practical session covering AI tools, prompting, writing, tone of voice and more.
Half-day AI content creation training - a practical session covering AI tools, use cases and prompting for AI copywriting, image and video generation.
One-to-one sessions - a block of one-hour one-to-one sessions tailored to your challenges.
All of my sessions cover the pros, cons and ethical considerations of using generative AI.
You can find out more on my website. Or drop me an email hello@kerryharrison.io
I also teach the AI Copywriting Masterclass at the CIM and the AI for Marketing Masterclass at the DMA.
Finally. You can try Midjourney for free
My Intro to Midjourney walkthrough
When it comes to AI image generation tools, Midjourney is always the clear winner for me.
It delivers consistently good results and kicks DALL-E 3’s arse.
However, until now, there have always been a few sticking points with Midjourney:
When you were starting out, you had to go through Discord, which was a faff.
The website was initially only available to people who’d generated 10,000 images on Discord.
There was no free trial or credits. If you wanted to try it, you had to pay.
The great news is, anyone can now access the Midjourney website and generate 25 images for free. Whoop.
Although, you will need a Discord or Google account to sign up.
Never tried Midjourney? I’ve created a quick 3-minute video tour here.
Open AI’s new models cost how much?!
If you follow AI news, you’ve probably heard about Open AI’s two upcoming models - Strawberry and Orion. Sam Altman has been dropping hints about Strawberry for a while.
Nothing has officially been announced yet, but here’s a quick Q&A to outline what I’ve gathered so far.
Q: What is Strawberry?
A: According to a Reuters report in July, the ChatGPT-maker is working on an advanced reasoning model, codenamed Strawberry. This will bring us a step closer to autonomous AI agents.
Leaked documents describe Strawberry as a model that enables "the company’s AI to not just generate answers to queries but to plan ahead enough to navigate the internet autonomously and reliably to perform what OpenAI terms 'deep research.'"
Q: When will it be released?
A: I’ve read reports saying Strawberry could be integrated into ChatGPT this year. But OpenAI does have a habit of teasing well before release.
Q: So what is Orion?
A: Orion is supposedly the big, big news. It’s the follow-on from ChatGPT-4o and will be their new flagship model.
As well as being more powerful, it will draw on Strawberry’s reasoning power, which could reduce hallucinations and give us more nuanced, knowledgeable responses.
Q: Err, how much?
A: According to articles last week, ChatGPT could be charging as much as $2,000 per month for access to these new models. When you consider ChatGPT’s most advanced model currently costs individuals $20 a month, that’s a massive jump!
💡 Prompting tips
Prompting tips and hacks to help you create your content
Prompt with personas rather than tone
I bang on about this all the time, but breaking free from the default ChatGPT/Claude/Gemini default tone is important. You don’t want to sound like every other Gen-AI user, right?
So, here’s something you can try to get more conversational and colourful outputs.
Instead of using generic tone cues in your prompt, e.g.
Please use a professional but friendly tone of voice.
Try using a persona cue instead:
Please write like a 45-year-old business founder talking to a long-standing client over dinner.
I find the results are more conversational and work particularly well for social media content.
🏡 AI for life
New AI tools for life outside of work
Food Mood by Google AI
Image from Food Mood
Need some inspiration for your next meal? Food Mood is an AI tool that creates unique recipes by blending influences from different cuisines.
Type in what you’re looking for and hey presto, you’ve got a recipe to try out.
Enjoy.
👁️ Other AI news
My AI news picks from across the web
Claude Enterprise is now here. Perfect if you’re a bigger organisation and want to train a model on your internal company knowledge for more industry-specific insights. It offers you enterprise-grade security features as well.
Open AI hits 1m paid business users.
YouTube announces new safety features to prevent content that reproduces performers’ voices or creates facial deepfakes of creators.
💛 The Human Element
A celebration of our wild minds and creative souls
Transitioning to Autumn
My set-up yesterday.
Yesterday, I taught a guided writing class as part of Elizabeth Danny’s Rest Retreat. It was so lovely. Not least because I got to deliver my session, and enjoy all the other relaxing offerings too. Ahhhhh.
I offered up a guided journaling workshop, aimed at easing us into the new autumn season.
As part of this I shared a beautiful poem by Danna Faulds, which feels apt for September.
At this time of year, while the business world continues to ask us for speed and maximum productivity, nature is doing the opposite.
For me, this poem is a reminder to take some lessons from nature. To resist the constant pushing, racing and controlling.
Even if it’s just a few moments, we can get so much from stopping, breathing consciously – and being open to life’s mysteries.
Walk Slowly – Danna Faulds
It only takes a reminder to breathe,
a moment to be still, and just like that,
something in me settles, softens, makes
space for imperfection. The harsh voice
of judgment drops to a whisper and I
remember again that life isn’t a relay
race; that we will all cross the finish
line; that waking up to life is what we
were born for. As many times as I forget,
catch myself charging forward
without even knowing where I’m going,
that many times I can make the choice
to stop, to breathe, and be, and walk
slowly into the mystery
Autumn Equinox Women’s Circle: Writing in the Woods | 18th September, Bristol
Summer Solstice Circle
On the subject of escaping the busyness of life, I’m running my Autumn Equinox women’s circle in the woods in 9 days time.
It’s a chance to rest, reflect on your year so far – and set intentions for the new season. All while drinking tea, eating cake and hanging out with other lovely women.
As ever, it’s happening in the beautiful private woodland at Leigh Court, Bristol.
When: Wednesday 18th September
Time: 7-9pm
Cost: £15 + booking fee
Here’s the info. I’d love to see you.
☀️ Upcoming Adventures
My upcoming public talks, workshops and events
I’m on the panel at Purple Fish’s AI-enhanced PR event tomorrow, Tuesday 10th September. Register here. It’s free.
Autumn Equinox: Writing in the Woods Women’s Circle: Wed 18th Sept, Abbots Leigh, Bristol Book here.
Yoga and Creativity Retreat: Carolyn Thompson and I are running another retreat. It’s called Create. Rest. Reset. Date: 20-22nd June 2025. Bookings opening soon. Yay.
10% off tickets for CopyCon. I’m excited to be speaking as part of CopyCon 2024. Give me a shout if you’d like 10% off tickets.
I find the environmental conversation very interesting. There's a different tone to conversations about new technology AI, Blockchain etc. than existing technology. I'm not doubting the environmental impact but we talk about it differently to how we talk about the car industry, aviation industry or construction industry, these are all seen as necessary evils that we will improve over time but new technology is sometimes seen as something we should stop.